Waiting For The Rain To Fall
by anan0maly
Summary: There are things they can learn from each other. They just never realized that until now.  AU after season 1. Faberry with hints/mentions of other ships. Reposting parts from LJ.
1. Prologue: Memory

**Title:** I'm Still Waiting For the Rain to Fall  
><strong>Author:<strong> anan0maly  
><strong>Summary:<strong> _...pour real life down on me..._  
><strong>Pairing:<strong> Eventual Rachel/Quinn  
><strong>Rating:<strong> PG to NC-17  
><strong>Word Count:<strong> 49,000+ (so far)  
><strong>Disclaimer:<strong> I don't own these characters unfortunately. Title belongs to **Evanescence's** _'Good Enough'_.  
><strong>Author's Note:<strong> This was born about by a conversation regarding Rachel's two gay dads. Anyway, I mentioned that maybe they weren't all they appeared to be in a passing comment. Then I talked to my friend Aimee about it. I told her at the time it would probably be a one-shot. We were trying to figure out how to make it Faberry, and after many hours, we managed to flesh out a plan that turned this potential one-shot into a multi-part fic. I fear it could be a long one, and I have a little bit written up, but it's been difficult trying to keep this going. I started this over a year ago and it's nowhere near finished, but I don't want to abandon it either.  
><strong>Betas:<strong> My friends Aimee and Alma. :) Thank you both so so much.

* * *

><p><strong>Prologue:<strong>

**& ! & ! &**

"Again," her father ordered from behind the camera.

This was the fifth time he'd allowed her to sing the whole song from start to end. He'd already stopped her part-way through six times. Rachel held in a sigh, straightened her back, clasped her hands together and counted the beats in her head. She was going to nail it this time. She would.

"_Midnight__, not a sound from the pavement, has the moon lost her memory..."_

Rachel poured all her heart and soul into her performance. She could see her father watching intently through the camera, his finger tapping the slow beat against his thigh, his lips mouthing the words along with her. When she spied a small frown beginning to mar his brow, she knew she needed to try harder. Her fingernails dug into her palms as she strained and pushed forward to be the best, and she hoped he noticed the extra effort.

She made it through to the end of the song without interruption. She'd performed better that time. She didn't allow herself to relax though. Past recordings had taught her that she could be singing the song through another ten times before he felt she'd achieved the best she could.

It took them twenty-eight recordings to perfect '_On My Own'_.

Her father sighed and rubbed his forehead. Rachel could see he was tired and ready to give up for the evening. "It looks like that's about as good as you're going to get tonight." He switched the camera off and closed the lens cover. Rachel knew she couldn't leave her spot just yet. She stood tall and watched as he shook his head in disappointment. "I don't know what's gotten into you lately, Rachel. You can do better than this." Rachel just nodded her head in agreement. She knew he hadn't been looking for any excuses for her poor performance. She knew she could do better.

"Here," he said holding the digital recorder out to her. "Take it. Upload it and then get to bed. You have vocal exercises to do in the morning." And with that, he left her room closing her bedroom door behind him. He didn't quite slam it, but it definitely hadn't been a soft click of the latch either. Rachel jumped at the sound and her grip tightened around the camera.

She stood stock still as she waited a few minutes in case he returned. It wouldn't be the first time he'd decided that she needed to try it just one more time. It took her three long, torturous minutes before she slowly let her shoulders slump. She set the camera down on her desk next to her laptop before quickly and quietly packing up the recording equipment.

She stored the tripod away in its place in the cabinet under her desk. She made sure it was standing perfectly straight and in easy reach. Her father liked things _just so_. She tidied up the cables and made sure they were all wrapped up for easy use tomorrow evening. The cables were carefully put away in her top desk drawer.

She stifled a yawn as she quickly checked the time. 12:37 am. She needed to be up in less than six hours. Rachel eyed her bed briefly before she let out a tired sigh and took a seat at her desk. She flipped her laptop open and logged into her MySpace account. She ignored the 'New Comments' and navigated directly to upload a new video.

She'd been uploading videos for two years now and, in minutes, she had the camera hooked up to the laptop. She used the time it would take to upload the video to quickly check that she had everything packed in her bag for the next day's classes. She was glad tomorrow was Friday. She was exhausted and desperately needed the weekend to catch up on all the homework she'd missed.

Just as she was zipped her bag closed, she heard a soft knock at the door. Her dad poked his head through the entryway. He spotted Rachel at her desk and used it as an invitation to open the door wider.

"I'm just getting ready for bed," Rachel explained as she idly directed her thumb toward her open laptop. "Just uploading tonight's video," she said as she turned her head away to check on the progress of the upload. The upload was only at 23% and so, in an effort to avoid her dad's knowing look of disappointment, she made her way to her bed. She located her pajamas from behind her pillow and pulled them out to lay the tank top and pajama pants on the covers.

Her dad stood silently at the door for a few more seconds watching as Rachel began to fold down her sheets. "Your father said you weren't trying hard enough," he finally said.

Rachel paused, her right hand gripping her comforter and sheets. "I'm sorry," she apologized softly. She couldn't meet his gaze. She couldn't handle _both _of her parents' disappointment. Not tonight. "I promise I'll try harder."

She heard her father sigh from the doorway. "See that you do. You know we only want what's best for you. Your father knows more about this than anyone else we know. You should listen to him."

Rachel began to feel the sting of tears behind her eyes but she willed them not to fall. "I will. I promise," she replied with a nod of her head and a small crooked smile, her eyes still unable to meet her dad's.

It was only when she heard the soft click of her door closing that she let one lone tear slide down her cheek. Furious with herself at this sign of weakness, she hurriedly brushed the tear aside, took a deep breath and made her way back to her laptop. The upload was complete and she only needed to make sure it was labeled correctly. Once she was satisfied with the new video, she made sure to log out and shut down. She wasn't sure why she even bothered logging out; her father knew her password anyway.

Rachel changed into her pajamas before picking out an outfit for the next day. She hung the skirt and top with a matching cardigan off the wardrobe handle. She draped her knee-high socks over the left shoulder, perfectly in place. She carefully chose her footwear and placed the shoes together on the floor beneath her skirt. Everything in its place.

It wasn't until after 1am that Rachel found herself readying herself for bed in her ensuite. Her pink headband held her hair back from her face. She splashed some warm water on her face and allowed herself a few tense moments of staring into the mirror.

"One day you'll get it right," she whispered to her reflection. She took a shaky breath and quickly averted her gaze from the mirror. She turned the taps off with a flick of her wrist before burying her face in a fluffy white towel.


	2. Part 1: Singing In The Rain

**Title:** I'm Still Waiting for the Rain to Fall  
><strong>Author:<strong> anan0maly  
><strong>Summary:<strong> _...pour real life down on me..._  
><strong>Pairing:<strong> Eventual Rachel/Quinn  
><strong>Rating:<strong> PG to NC-17  
><strong>Word Count:<strong> 49,000+ (so far)  
><strong>Disclaimer:<strong> I don't own these characters unfortunately. Title belongs to Evanescence's _'Good Enough'_.  
><strong>Betas:<strong> My friends Aimee and Alma. :) Thank you both so so much.  
><strong>Author's Note: <strong>Thank you for all the story alerts. I know some of you have probably already read this, but thanks for hanging in there and reading it again as I slowly repost it.

* * *

><p><strong>Part One:<strong>

**& ! & ! &**

It was half past eleven on Saturday morning and Rachel had been awake since seven thirty. She completed an hour work-out on her elliptical trainer, warmed up her vocal cords, ate a healthy breakfast of muesli, fruit and yogurt and made her way to her Saturday dance class. _Hip Hop._ Of all the classes she had to take, hip hop was the one she loathed the most. She couldn't seem to let her body just move to the music like she could with Ballet. She couldn't _freestyle_.

She'd tried countless times to take on her instructor's advice. "Let your body take over. Don't think, just move." But Rachel just couldn't seem to move her body without prior thought. She craved the choreography of ballet, jazz and tap. When she _did_ let her body move, she was awkward and ill-timed. Her father wanted her to be well-rounded, but Rachel couldn't help but think that her tiny frame and need for structure wasn't suited for Hip Hop dance.

Halfway through the two hour class, Meaghan called for a five minute break. Rachel moved over to one of the windows overlooking the main street below. She watched the people milling about going this way and that, carrying bags of shopping, checking watches, talking on cell phones. An interesting group of individuals eventually caught her eye.

Walking in a small group were Brittany, Santana, Kurt, Mercedes and Quinn. She wouldn't have noticed them at all if Brittany hadn't been wearing her bright red Cheerio's jacket. Rachel watched as Kurt flailed his hands around while Mercedes rolled her eyes and Rachel couldn't help but imagine the girl muttering a dismissive "whatever". Brittany's hand was clasped tightly with Santana's and Quinn looked relaxed and comfortable walking to the left of Kurt.

Rachel felt a pang of disappointment and hurt that they hadn't invited her along, but she quickly squashed the feeling because even if they _had_ asked, she would have had to decline. Rachel tortured herself one more time by wondering where they were headed and if they were meeting up with anyone else from Glee.

"Ten seconds!" Meaghan called out, breaking Rachel from her thoughts.

She sighed and bowed her head before turning back toward the instructor. Another hour and she could go home.

**& ! & ! &**

On Monday morning, Rachel found herself standing in front of the fridge. She carefully read the schedule displayed, but wondered why she bothered reading it anymore, nothing ever changed. The few changes that had occurred in the past, were to replace or add activities, but never to eliminate them.

She pulled at the red marker attached to the fridge door. Carefully she placed a tick next to 'cardio workout', 'vocal exercises' and 'breakfast'. She carefully recapped the marker before replacing the pen in the same position she'd taken it. Some days she felt like Miss Pillsbury with how accurate and precise her actions had to be.

Quickly re-checking her schedule for the day, she noted that her vocal training, tap class and piano practice were still in place, as was the time allotted for working on the night's MySpace video. Grabbing an apple from the fruit bowl, Rachel glanced at the time on the microwave. She had exactly twenty minutes to get to school.

She was almost out the door when she heard her dad's voice. "If you wait two minutes, I'll drive you," he offered.

Rachel looked up at her dad and greeted him with a wide smile. "Thanks, Dad. I should have left ten minutes ago, but my shower ran over time. I was hoping to get there early today." she watched as her dad nodded his head as he started to head toward the kitchen. "I wanted to speak with Mr. Schuester about some possible song selections."

Rachel's dad returned half a minute later with a thermos filled with coffee in one hand and a half peeled banana in the other. "I'm sure he's very grateful for the assistance you're giving him with song choices," her dad replied with a grin before taking a bite off the top of his banana. Rachel beamed up at her dad before following him out to the car.

The drive to school was a short one and Rachel took advantage of having her dad's full attention to tell him about the songs they were singing in Glee and how they had another invitational coming up in a few weeks. She told him about the new shipment of props for the Renaissance Club and that the week's topic for Speech Club was "Cafeteria Food." Although Rachel thought it was a ridiculous topic, lacking merit, she'd already outlined the pros and cons of McKinley High's very unique dietary selection.

Rachel appreciated her dad humoring her as she barely took a breath to fill him in on the exciting new things. When they reached the front of the school, her dad didn't even think twice about pulling up to the front steps. Rachel thanked him profusely for the lift before grabbing her uneaten apple and bag and quickly exiting the car.

Rachel wasn't able to catch Mr. Schue before school as she had hoped. She thought she'd seen him disappearing around a few corners but when she'd marched down the hallway, he was nowhere to be seen. With a huff, she gave up. For the time being.

During her lunch period she quickly grabbed a sandwich from the cafeteria. She had a lot to organize for the Renaissance Club meeting that afternoon and Mr. Grabowski was useless. Rachel acknowledged his meagre efforts to keep the Renaissance Club running, but his facts were more often than not, historically incorrect. Any decent historian knew Europe had been reborn when Constantinople, _not_ _Constantinopolous_, was overrun by Ottoman troops. Rachel much preferred it when Mr. Grabowski was _not_ in attendance at club meetings.

Rachel quickly made her way toward the cafeteria exit. She spied a few of the Glee club members eating together just as she neared the doors. Rachel watched Santana shoot a glare in Quinn's direction when the blond laughed a little too loudly at something Artie and Tina had been discussing. With their backs facing her, Rachel could see Finn was sandwiched between Mike and Tina. Rachel moved to avert her gaze but was distracted by a hand eagerly waving in her direction.

Brittany had a bright, inviting smile on her face. Rachel checked over her shoulder wondering who Brittany was waving to. There was no one there. Turning back with a confused look, Rachel could see the energetic cheerleader motioning for _her _to come and join them at the table. Rachel just shot her a grin and pointed toward the exit. She shrugged her shoulders and watched as Brittany's face fell. Rachel quickly hurried out of the cafeteria, missing the frown that formed on Brittany's face.

**& ! & ! &**

The first twenty minutes of lunch were spent taking a few bites of her sandwich while organising the new head gear and weapons for the Renaissance Club. Mr. Grabowski didn't know the difference between a Pleated Flat Cap and a Brocade Flat Cap and so Rachel had volunteered to organize the club's wardrobe.

At precisely 11:40, Rachel left the Renaissance attire categorized and strode swiftly to her locker. She pulled out her Spanish folder and text book and quickly made her way toward the library. She would probably only have fifteen minutes to work through the first few questions, but with her afternoon schedule so busy, she had to take any time she could find to fit in her homework.

Twenty minutes later when the bell sounded in the library signifying the end of the lunch period, Rachel didn't waste a second. She quickly scribbled in the end of the translated sentence and packed up her belongings. She pushed her way through the throngs of students making their way to lockers and classrooms. When she finally made it to her own locker she switched out her Spanish for her English and quickly slammed her locker door closed.

**& ! & ! &**

When two thirty finally rolled around at the end of the school day, Rachel breathed out a sigh of relief. With classes finally done for the day, she quickly ignored Finn calling out her name as she raced back to her locker. She needed to pack her bag so she could leave as soon as Renaissance Club was over. She checked the timetable taped to the inside of her locker door and grabbed books and folders for the corresponding subjects. Satisfied she had all she needed; Rachel quickly zipped up her bag and reached into her locker for her Renaissance notebook and a feathered pen. Rachel was nothing if not as authentic as possible.

The cover of the notebook had a picture of the roof of the Sistine Chapel and on the very top right hand corner was Rachel's name accompanied by a gold star. Rachel was the club-appointed 'Queen' and when they didn't have enough members for a 'Scribe', she made sure to take on that role as well. She wasn't going to let just _anyone_ take down the minutes of their meetings and they had just begun discussing ideas for a Renaissance Festival.

By the end of the club meeting everyone had their assignments. Rachel would have volunteered to provide some of the food, but really, when did she have time to cook? She'd been stuck with designing the posters advertising the festival and she supposes she should be grateful for such an easy task, but she would have liked to have been able to contribute a little more.

**& ! & ! &**

At exactly half-past three that afternoon Rachel quickly made her way toward the front entrance, her Renaissance minutes book in one hand, her bag in the other. She tried to hurriedly fit the book in her bag before making it to her father's awaiting car. He was always there to make sure she made it to her voice lessons with Rosemary every Monday and Friday afternoon. She quickly slid into her seat as her father gave her a slight smile before releasing the handbrake. Rachel barely had time to put her seatbelt on when she felt the car surging forward.

"Hi," She greeted softly. Over the years, the time Rachel got to spend with her father had become increasingly strained. In recent months, her father had been focused intently on ensuring Rachel was achieving at the highest levels possible. He made sure to clear his afternoons to accommodate her numerous dance, acting and voice lessons. She was thankful that her piano lessons were taken at home with Günter or she'd probably be seeing the inside of her father's car more than her own house.

"We've got about twenty five minutes before we need to get you to Rosemary. I'd offer to stop and grab a quick snack, but I don't want you too full to affect your projection. But I did bring you a bottle of water. It's behind my seat," her father said in lieu of a greeting. Rachel nodded her head in understanding before reaching behind him to grab the 20oz bottle.

"Thanks, Daddy," Rachel replied with a small smile. She watched his profile for a few seconds as he concentrated on the road. When she was little, they would slide a worn-out tape of the great favorites into the tape deck and sing along together, as loud as they possibly could. Bette Midler, Barbra Streisand, Liza Minnelli, Judy Garland, Sarah Brightman, Patti LuPone. He would always help her pronounce the big words and they even had a few car-appropriate actions, from seat-shimmying to spirit fingers. These days, their car rides were usually filled with instructions he felt would inspire her to do better, try harder. Sometimes, she preferred that to the empty silence she was experiencing today.

Rosemary's studio was about a fifteen minute trip from McKinley High. They drove down the quiet street as her father barely held back an expletive at the lack of parking spaces. He insisted on dropping her off at the door so she wouldn't be late and Rachel couldn't help but be grateful for the reprieve. She quickly made her way into the studio where Rosemary was already waiting with a warm smile. Out of all of her coaches and instructors, she thought she might like Rosemary the best.

"Your father not joining us, today?" She asked with a small, sort of knowing smile.

Rachel just offered her a grin. "He's just parking the car."

Rosemary's gaze almost dropped, and her smile certainly did. "Best get started, then."

About ten minutes into the lesson, Rachel was warming up her vocal cords when her father entered to take a seat in the far corner, his eyes trained on her. Rachel hated that she almost missed a high F because she felt nervous under his scrutiny. She didn't mind having her father in the room with her; he pushed her to achieve more, to reach higher for that note. It was just that he could sometimes be a bit intimidating.

Throughout the next fifty minutes she felt every frown her father made, every small shake of his head, every sigh that escaped his lips. She caught a nod once or twice, but she wasn't sure if it was to indicate his approval or agree with something Rosemary had said.

When the session ended, Rosemary placed a comforting hand on her arm. She wasn't quite sure why Rosemary felt she needed the reassurance, but she was grateful for it anyway. Rachel just grinned and told Rosemary she'd see her again on Friday.

**& ! & ! &**

Thirty minutes after her voice lesson, Rachel found herself in a crowded changing room at the local dance studio. A few of the younger teens were gathered in a circle, heads bent over the small screen of an iPhone. "He's **so** cute!" One girl exclaimed loudly. The rest of the group agreed in chorus.

Rachel rolled her eyes and pushed her way passed the group of giggling girls to find a spot along the wall. She set her bag down and began to quickly change into her tap clothes. Rachel was a firm believer that once you stepped foot inside the studio, your focus should be on your steps, on the music, on your timing.

Rachel pulled off her sweater and unbuttoned her shirt. Since the beginning of the new year, all of Rachel's dance classes had been working on new routines for their Spring Showcase. Jill, the owner of 'A Step Up', had organized for the Spring Showcase to be based around the 50's, 60's and 70's. Rachel would be dancing to some classics like, 'Singing in the Rain', 'Mack the Knife', 'New York, New York' and 'Puttin' on the Ritz'. Rachel desperately hoped she'd be awarded a solo spot in at least one of the performances. As she slipped on a t-shirt and leggings, Rachel mentally prepared herself for two hours of tap.

Around her, the changing room began to empty out. Rachel quickly pulled on a pair of socks and slipped on her tap shoes. She only had five minutes to get onto the floor and start warm ups.

When she finally made it out to the floor, Alyssa was rallying the class together in rows, making sure everyone was in their place. As the owner, Jill's number one rule was that parents were to stay outside at all times. She felt, especially with the younger class members, that parental presence deterred from any progress that could be achieved. Rachel whole-heartedly agreed. Mr. Berry didn't.

During her dance lessons, Rachel's father would begrudgingly retreat to one of the local coffee shops. He always took his laptop and worked for two hours from there. He would arrive back at the dance studio door right on time to take Rachel home.

Monday evenings were always a bit of a rush. As soon as Rachel finished her tap class, she would have to race right out of the studio, with a few seconds to throw her school clothes on over her dance clothes to jump into her father's car. They would try to get home by at least 7:45pm so Rachel could have half an hour to practice the piano while the finishing touches of dinner were completed. As soon as she ate, she would retreat to her bedroom with her father to work on a new MySpace video for the evening.

Some nights Rachel would have the time to practice the piano after dinner, allowing her a little bit of time to begin digesting before performing. Although she liked to record a video every night to keep her talent alive, her father had the final say on recordings that were to be uploaded. This meant that there were some evenings when twenty takes just weren't going to cut it and they would either scrap the song entirely, or hold off until the following evening.

Although her schedule had Rachel's bedtime allocated as 11:00pm, with the hour beforehand devoted to homework, she usually found herself awake until midnight or later just trying to work through assignments. She was lucky her father was such a perfectionist and encouraged a good image, or she'd never have the time to shower and remain fresh-faced and clean.

Rachel's weeks generally consisted of rushing from one place to the next. She thought herself lucky that her parents were so invested in her future. She didn't want to stay in Lima, and both her parents were happy to help her get out of the small town with its measly 40,000 people.

Yes, her schedule had her busy and yes, she did find herself more tired than not, but she knew in the end it would all pay off. She would make it out of Lima. She would make it to New York. She would make it on Broadway and she would make her parents proud. One day.


	3. Part 2: Jingle Bells

**Title:** I'm Still Waiting for the Rain to Fall  
><strong>Author:<strong> anan0maly  
><strong>Summary:<strong> _...pour real life down on me..._  
><strong>Pairing:<strong> Eventual Rachel/Quinn  
><strong>Rating:<strong> PG to NC-17  
><strong>Word Count:<strong> 49,000+ (so far)  
><strong>Disclaimer:<strong> I don't own these characters unfortunately. Title belongs to Evanescence's _'Good Enough'_.  
><strong>Betas:<strong>My friends Aimee and Alma. :) Thank you both so so much.

**Author's Note:** First off, thanks to Nilea for the review. I hope you can stick with the story even though Rachel's dads weren't what you had envisioned. :) Second, I want to apologize in advance if Brittany sounds OOC. I find her very difficult to write and I'm still working on it. :) Thanks.

* * *

><p><strong>Part Two:<strong>

**& ! & ! &**

Rachel's weeks continued in a very structured, strict and rigid routine. The only change that occurred was during early March when Mr. Schuester finally set a date for the McKinley High Glee Club Invitational. There were to be five other high schools performing two songs each and although Rachel's focus would usually be on the songs they were to perform, she couldn't help but think back to her schedule and what she would be missing on a Wednesday night.

She would probably have to miss the Speech Club meeting for that week and she i_might/i_ make it to the first hour of her ballet lesson, but her plans quickly flew out the window when Mr. Schuester announced that as the hosts for the evening, they were to remain at school to rehearse before serving as ushers to their guests and their families.

Rachel knew her father wasn't going to be too impressed with the setback, but she knew he wouldn't make a fuss out of it until they were safely tucked away at home.

"You're going to miss two hours of ballet," her father had commented when she told him the invitational was during the week.

Rachel had nodded her head to confirm his statement. "Mr. Schuester has requested that the glee club remain after school to rehearse." Rachel saw her father roll his eyes. "I realize this disrupts my schedule, but you know as well as I do that glee is important."

Her father sighed as he turned away from her. He placed his hands on his hips and looked over his shoulder at her. Rachel stood with her arms crossed, head held high. "Fine, but I'm calling Jill to organize a one on one session with Susan on the Sunday."

Rachel briefly entertained the idea of fighting her father on the decision. The old saying about picking your battles ran through her mind, so she just gave a slight nod in agreement. She knew this would mean severe shuffling of her Sunday schedule to try and fit some homework assignments in before Monday, but of all the extracurricular activities she was involved in, glee was probably the one she couldn't live without.

**& ! & ! &**

The morning of the Invitational, Rachel found a note from her father pinned to her weekly schedule. It _kindly _informed her that she was expected to practice the piano for half an hour after school. Her father had stated that Mr. Schuester had been notified and that she'd have full use of the piano in the music room from 3:00 to 3:30pm. Rachel carefully removed the note and in one quick moment of rebellion she scrunched it up and threw it in the bin.

Breathing out, she turned and took three steps toward the hallway. In a quick panic, she quickly turned back to retrieve the note. She smoothed the creased paper open, carefully making sure to preserve the edges. Folding it in half she carried it with her out the door.

At precisely 2:30 that afternoon, all glee club members had convened in the music room as per Mr. Schuester's request. Rachel held her piano books and a ring binder close to her chest as she shuffled slightly in her seat. She waited impatiently as Mr. Schue conversed with a few of the band members who had also been asked to attend.

Rachel checked the clock on the wall. Five minutes had passed and she wanted everyone to clear out so she could practice. She quickly raised a hand, high up in the air. When this didn't seem to deter Mr. Schuester from his conversation, she wiggled her fingers slightly and waved her arm from side to side. "Mr. Schuester?" She called loudly.

Rachel spied Mr. Schuester's shoulders slump slightly before he turned toward her. "Yes, Rachel?"

She ignored his hands on his hips and his raised eyebrow. "As captain I must insist that we call this meeting to order. We have a very busy schedule to adhere to this afternoon and I think it is imperative we stay on track. Don't you?" She asked with a pointed look.

Mr. Schuester sighed and dropped his head forward, his chin resting on his chest. "Sure Rachel."

Rachel beamed as she adjusted the books and binder to rest on her thighs. She straightened her back and shared a grin with Mercedes on her right, who just rolled her eyes and turned to talk to Kurt.

The club meeting lasted no more than ten minutes and only because Noah Puckerman was sidetracked by the definition of 'escort'.

"_You'll act as their escort." Mr. Schuester explained with a nod of his head, his hands clasped together._

"_Hold up...You're pimping us out?" Puck had asked his brow furrowed in confusion. Matt elbowed Puck in the side while Mike scrunched his nose up and raised an eyebrow. Mercedes rolled her eyes and Kurt tried to work out how many brain cells Puck actually had._

"_Escort, Noah, as in 'accompanying another to guide, protect or show honor." Rachel admonished from her seat with a toss of her hair._

_Quinn snorted with a wry smile etched on her face. When Noah still looked confused sitting next to an equally confused Finn, Quinn simplified it for them. "Just show the people to their seats."_

Rachel watched as her glee teammates filed out of the music room. She could hear Noah, Mike, Matt and Finn discussing game plays for the upcoming Friday game while Santana and Brittany discussed taking a trip to 'The Meeting Place on Market' to grab a snack.

Making a conscious effort to block out their conversation, Rachel made her way to the piano and began to diligently set up her piano books. She lifted the top of the piano and propped it open on the smaller stand. Out of the corner of her eye she spied the music room door wide open. Rolling her eyes at how inconsiderate people could be, she quickly strode over to close the door.

Rachel gingerly made her way back to the piano and took a seat. She shuffled forward on the stool to rest right on the edge. She placed her right foot on the pedal on the right and curled her fingers above the keys. She quickly and efficiently warmed up her fingers playing a few scales and practicing a few daily finger exercises.

When she felt warmed up enough she ran through the first piece she'd be performing for her exam. Her fingers gracefully caressed the ivory keys as her body swayed with the flow of the notes. Her eyes gazed over the upcoming bars, her fingers following seconds behind. She practiced the song through twice more before grinning at her accuracy and tempo.

Turning the pages in her exam book she skipped to the third piece she would be performing for her examination. 'Rumba Toccata' by Paul Harvey was a lively piece of music based on the Cuban Rumba. The song was supposed to be played very fast, in a restless agitated style. In other words, it was to be played at 160 beats per minute. It was a fun and lively song but there were still some areas Rachel knew she needed to improve on.

Rachel played the song through once and mentally catalogued the bars she would need to revisit. She played the song through a second time but at a much slower pace making sure to hit every note carefully and accurately.

Working back through the piece, she began to focus on the troublesome areas, particularly the hand change into the ascending C and D scales. She had only been learning the song for two weeks but she just kept moving her fingers to the wrong notes. After the fourth attempt, Rachel balled up her fists in frustration and hit her upper thighs once. She took a deep breath and closed her eyes. She tried to relax and let the piece play her, and not the other way around, but she just couldn't help but think about what notes were coming next and planning hand movements.

Rachel quickly spied the clock and realized she only had another fifteen minutes left. She shook out her fingers, rotated her neck and took three deep breaths, her eyes firmly remained closed. On her last breath, she opened her eyes and her fingers hovered over the keys and just as she hit that first note, the choir room door opened and she heard a few giggles and some shushing. Ignoring the intrusion Rachel continued playing.

She could feel at least three different pairs of eyes on her back as the newcomers quietly moved toward their seats. Rachel steadfastly ignored her audience as she prepared for the dreaded hand change into the ascending scales. She heard Santana mutter something to her companions and just before the change, Rachel was distracted by Quinn telling Santana to be quiet. Her focus had completely shifted from the notes and keys in front of her that her hands moved of their own accord, hitting every note with precision. Half a minute later and Rachel played the final chords, a grin a mile wide lighting up her face. She couldn't help but turn toward Santana, Brittany and Quinn to share her excitement, but Santana just raised an eyebrow. "What?" She asked in a bored tone.

Rachel's grin faltered slightly before she turned quickly back to the piano and her piano book. She couldn't help but slump her shoulders, not in defeat but in relief. She knew she could do it, she just needed the right focus, or lack thereof.

"S! That's mean." Brittany said while lightly slapping Santana's exposed knee. "Rach, that was really great!"

Rachel instantly perked up and turned back to the trio. "Thank you, Brittany. Your admiration of my excellent skills as a pianist is duly noted."

Brittany looked toward Santana and Quinn with a confused expression. Quinn watched Rachel with a half smile while Santana rolled her eyes and told Brittany that Rachel said 'thanks'. Brittany shrugged before jumping out of her seat and skipping over to Rachel's side. She took a seat practically in Rachel's lap and grinned at the brunette. "Now play something real."

Rachel narrowed her eyes slightly. "That _was_ something real. It was composed by Mr. Paul Harvey and will be the third piano piece I will perform for my grade six examination." Rachel sat up tall, chest puffed out. She reached for the piano book and began flipping the pages to the second piece she would be playing.

Brittany giggled as she reached for Rachel's hands. "No silly. Play something _real_," and with that Brittany spread Rachel's fingers over the keys before placing her fingers over the keys at the higher end of the piano. "Like this." Brittany instructed as she started to play random notes that sounded awful and lacked any melody or rhythm.

Rachel couldn't help but grin at Brittany. "You mean like this?" Rachel asked as she slightly elbowed the tall blond in the side and moved her hands into position and began to softly play the opening chords to Beethoven's _Ave Maria_ composition. As she moved her right hand up the keyboard striking the chords softly, Brittany's eyebrows began to furrow in recognition.

A few feet away, Santana and Quinn had been successfully ignoring Brittany and Rachel and had continued their conversation about their current English novel _To Kill a Mockingbird_. "I had to explain to B over and over _and_ promise that no birds were killed in the book. I don't know what I'm going to do when Tom tries to escape near the end."

Quinn looked over at Brittany holding Rachel's hands in her own. "It depends if Tom's death is going to be important to the reading assignment. If it is, we'll sit her down and warn her about it. If it's not, then I think we can - "

But she never finished her sentence because Rachel began playing _Ave Maria_ and Quinn felt like she was transported back to the first grade, sitting in the front pew of her family's church watching her mother standing beside the altar, hands clasped together as she led the congregation in a rendition of _Ave Maria_. She could practically feel God staring down at her and boring holes into her as punishment for her sins.

"Quinn? Isn't this - " Brittany began to ask, her head turned toward Quinn and Santana.

"No," Quinn quickly interrupted.

Rachel suddenly felt the tension in the room and slowly took her fingers off the keys. Brittany shrugged her shoulders and turned back to Rachel with a grin. "Teach me something?" She asked pleadingly.

Rachel couldn't help but look passed Brittany to see Quinn bowing her head and Santana placing a tentative hand on Quinn's knee in what looked to be a sign of comfort. Rachel could see how awkward Santana felt at the action and if the room hadn't still been filled with such tension, she would have commented on it. Rachel shifted her gaze to meet Brittany's when she felt the Cheerio tapping her on the shoulder repeatedly.

"Will you?" Brittany asked again, her grin still in place. "Something Christmas-y. It's my favorite holiday."

Rachel thought for a few seconds. "_Jingle Bells_?"

Brittany lunged right for Rachel and wrapped her long arms around the small girl. She squeezed Rachel tightly before shifting in excitement. For the next ten minutes as they waited for the rest of the club to return, Rachel taught Brittany how to play _Jingle Bells_ on the piano. Brittany wasn't that quick a learner but the two giggled and grinned as Rachel had to help Brittany place her fingers properly on the keys.

Santana and Quinn fell back into their conversation about _To Kill a Mockingbird_, but Quinn was only half listening as her attention continued to stray to Rachel and Brittany playing around on the piano. She always thought she had Rachel Berry figured out. She would have thought Rachel would get frustrated trying to teach something that seemed so simple. But it appeared that Rachel was the exact opposite. She exuded confidence in her abilities and yes, she could be condescending when offering "assistance" but Quinn realized that no one had ever really just _asked_ Rachel for help.

Quinn continued to watch as Rachel calmly explained to Brittany why the notes needed to be played by specific fingers. This was the third time Rachel explained it, but she didn't once show frustration. She continued on in a cheery voice with a smile and demonstrated what she had meant. She encouraged Brittany to try and even when Brittany played the same wrong note over and over again, Rachel would tell her to just play the right one and keep going.

"Huh." Quinn breathed out as she watched Rachel give Brittany a round of applause for her performance.

"What?" Santana asked as she turned to see what Quinn was looking at.

"S! S!" Brittany yelled out in excitement. "Listen!"

Santana watched with rapt attention as Brittany awkwardly played the notes on the piano. When she paused, Rachel softly coached her through and when she reached the end, Brittany turned to Santana with a grin.

"B, that was great!" Santana exclaimed proud of her blonde counterpart.

Brittany turned to Rachel and pulled her into another hug. When they pulled apart, Brittany reached for Rachel's hands. "My Nan's pretty sick. Like me, her favorite holiday is Christmas. I can't wait to play it for her next time." Brittany whispered. Rachel couldn't help but beam with pride.

"You know where to find me if you would like to learn more." Rachel replied with a smile.

"Thanks, Rach." Brittany said before she skipped off to sit with Santana leaving Rachel to tidy up her books.


	4. Part 3: The Great Indoors

**Title:** I'm Still Waiting for the Rain to Fall  
><strong>Author:<strong> anan0maly  
><strong>Summary:<strong> _...pour real life down on me..._  
><strong>Pairing:<strong> Eventual Rachel/Quinn  
><strong>Rating:<strong> PG to NC-17  
><strong>Word Count:<strong> 49,000+ (so far)  
><strong>Disclaimer:<strong> I don't own these characters unfortunately. Title belongs to Evanescence's _'Good Enough'_.  
><strong>Betas:<strong> My friend Aimee. :) Thank you both so so much.  
><strong>Author's Note: <strong>Sorry for the delay. I am in the middle of mid-terms. I just wanted to say thanks to those lovely people that have left feedback. I really appreciate any words of encouragement. I need them to give me a kick in the butt to keep writing. :)

* * *

><p><strong>Part Three:<strong>

**& ! & ! &**

_New Directions_ were rushing around backstage making sure make up, hair and costumes were in place. This year's Invitational had a twist thanks to Rachel's insistence that it have a focus. This year, Rachel had encouraged Mr. Schuester to go with a theme of hits from boy bands and/or girl groups. New Directions decided to split into two groups and represent the 'iconic' groups, the Spice Girls and 'Nsync. _Vocal Adrenaline_ had wowed the audience with their renditions of _I Want it That Way_ and _Everybody (Backstreet's Back)_ from The Backstreet Boys. Jane Addams Academy had taken the TLC route of _No Scrubs_ and _Unpretty_ while Perry High School had chosen to revive The Jackson Five and Elida High School took on Destiny's Child.

Rachel looked around at her teammates and took a deep breath. They had a few minutes before they were needed on stage for their numbers and she just needed a few seconds to herself. She was sure her parents were out in the audience and she _knew_ her father wasn't going to be impressed with the fact she was mainly singing back up this evening.

Rachel turned away from the rest of the group to make her way over to one of the mirrors under the guise of fixing her hair. She closed her eyes and tried to shift her focus back to their upcoming performance. She would deal with her father later.

Brittany watched Rachel leave the group and turned toward Santana and Quinn who were eyeing their dresses, making sure each piece of sequence was in place. "Did you know Mr. Berry is really mean?" She asked suddenly.

Santana and Quinn shared a look. Brittany saw it and crossed her arms over her chest and pouted. "I'm serious. Have you met them? I had to take them to their seats. He wasn't very nice."

_Brittany smiled warmly as she spotted Rachel's dads walking through the entrance. "Mr. and Mr. Berry! I can show you to some seats if you like?"_

"_Thank you... Brittany? Or Quinn?" Rachel's taller father asked, still not quite sure of all the names of the students in glee with their daughter._

"_Brittany," she replied with a grin before waving them to follow her down one of the aisles._

"_I hope this doesn't take too long." Brittany heard Rachel's shorter, glasses-wearing dad grumble._

"_Levi, please. This is important to her. You know this." Rachel's tall dad said in a hushed tone._

_Levi sighed. "I hope she practised the piano this afternoon because there won't be time for that before we start work on the next video when we get home."_

"_Do you mean her MySpace videos?" Brittany asked interrupting the pair, curiosity getting the better of her._

_Levi looked at Brittany and practically growled. "Of course."_

_Brittany quickly ushered them into a row and fled back to the front doors._

"So she has pushy parents, who doesn't? Come on, we need to go." Santana said before dragging Brittany by the hand toward the stage. Quinn began to follow her friends before something made her stop and look back at Rachel. The small brunette was smoothing down her dress and taking deep breaths. Quinn could see her muttering to herself while staring into the mirror. "Berry!" She called out, grabbing the girl's attention.

Rachel's head whipped around, grin in place. "Is it time?" She asked with excitement.

Quinn wasn't sure if Rachel was faking her enthusiasm or if it really_was_ genuine. Quinn just nodded her head before turning away and heading toward the stage, Rachel following a few steps behind.

Their performances went off without a hitch. The girls performed the Spice Girls' hit_Who Do You Think You Are? _They had opted to wear classy white and silver sequence costumes. Mercedes had vehemently refused to even entertain the idea of wearing a short dress like Quinn, Santana and Rachel and so she had been fitted with a white form-fitting pair of pants and a silver sequence top that still allowed her to sparkle up on stage.

Tina had chosen dress pants as well, but had made some minor alterations allowing for large gaping holes in various places on each leg. She wore a matching waist coat with silver sequence lining the collar.

The girls had agreed that Brittany's long, model-like legs would only be appreciated if appropriately displayed in sheer, skin-tight leggings. Brittany had no objection and Santana couldn't keep her eyes off Brittany.

Rachel had ensured they practiced their routine any chance they could and had even bought DVDs of the Spice Girls' live performances in order to learn the entire routine. The only issue that arose from the numerous viewings was Rachel deciding that some parts weren't uniform enough and so they'd added their own choreography.

When they excitedly walked off stage at the end of their number, the boys high-fived them in congratulations. Puck even managed a slap to Santana's backside before she turned around and punched him in the arm. Quinn managed to slap him upside the head as she hurried by and Rachel could only reach high enough to slap him on the other arm, hard.

The girls hurried to the side of the stage to watch the boys' performance. They grinned as they watched them line up on the darkened stage. As soon as the band began to play the opening beats the girls grinned and cheered for their teammates. Artie wheeled to the front of the stage, as he began to rap the opening lines to 'Nsync's _Girlfriend _featuring Nelly. When Puck jumped in to take over, he swivelled his hips and winked at the crowd, some of the female students of opposing schools and their _mothers_ cheered and catcalled.

Santana rolled her eyes and Quinn shook her head. It was so painfully obvious how she'd fallen into his bed almost two years ago.

Finn took lead on the song while Mike and Matt wowed the audience with their remarkable dancing skills. Rachel had never felt more proud of _New Directions_ than in that moment. Well, besides winning Sectionals the year before. There had been, by some miracle, an uncharacteristic tie between their team and _Vocal Adrenaline_ at Regionals which had allowed them to compete at Nationals. Neither team could have predicted the loss to an Oklahoma-based glee club, _The Okie-Okles._ This year though, Rachel was certain it would be different. Failure was _not_ an option.

**& ! & ! &**

As the auditorium began emptying out, Mr. Schuester signalled for the glee club to gather together at the front of the offered multiple congratulations' and slapped some of the guys on the back. His grin was spread wide across his face.

"You guys were phenomenal!" He gushed, his hands running through his curls. He couldn't contain his excitement which was made rather obvious by the repetitive bouncing up and down on the balls of his feet. "The theme was a great idea, Rach!" He acknowledged with a big grin. He clapped his hands together as Brittany sidled up to Rachel and gave her a side hug. Rachel grinned and blushed but couldn't pass up the opportunity to tell them that she had been right _again_.

Just as Rachel opened her mouth to gloat, Puck quickly jumped in. "Who's up for pizza? I'm starving!" And with that he swung an arm over Santana's shoulder and grinned. With a look of complete and utter disgust Santana violently shrugged off his arm and marched over to Brittany and Rachel where she crossed her arms and glared at Puck. "Ew."

"I could eat." Finn added with big goofy grin, gaining everyone's attention. He slid his hands in his pockets and looked around at the rest of the group who began agreeing loudly. Mike and Matt shared a fist-bump, while Artie and Tina grinned at each other. Kurt began discussing the merits of cheesy crusts verse thin crusts while Mercedes refused to consider any pizza without extra cheese.

The group quickly dispersed in order to locate parents and guardians to inform them of the change in the evening's plans. Quinn hung back as she watched her friends disperse. She'd been living back under her parents' roof for the better part of a year now and although they had allowed her back into their house and her bedroom, their relationship mainly consisted of a 'we ignore you, you ignore us' policy.

Quinn crossed her arms as she searched the auditorium for some of her teammates. About halfway up the aisle she was standing in, Quinn spotted Rachel and her dads talking. Heatedly, it seemed.

Quinn _knew_ she shouldn't be interested in the exchange between Rachel and her parents, but she just couldn't fight offthe intense curiosity that was creeping up her spine. From her position she could distinctly make out Rachel's ramrod straight back and her arms crossed over her chest. She stood firmly, her chest puffed out, ready for battle. The sight was a familiar one. In fact, Rachel usually looked like this every Glee practice, right before she'd engage either Mr. Schue or one of the unlucky glee club members in a battle of vocabulary and opinion.

Deciding to use an excuse of just "squeezing past", Quinn began to slowly make her way up the aisle, making sure to keep her gaze averted from Rachel and her dads so as not to draw attention. As she slowly approached the small family, harsh words began to float toward her ears.

" – have a schedule to follow!" Levi explained his tone low and steady.

Rachel raised her chin slightly. "I can miss one night of MySpace Videos."

Levi exhaled loudly through his nose. "Rachel, don't push me on this. I thought you were dedicated to your future."

Out of the corner of her eye, Quinn saw Rachel shift slightly. "I _am_ dedicated to my future as a Broadway star. But I also think it's healthy to intersperse work with some downtime."

"What do you think this invitational was all about?" Levi asked as he waved the perfectly folded, peach-colored program back and forth, as if to prove his point.

Rachel narrowed her eyes at her father. "Glee might seem like a passing fancy to you, but I take it _very _seriously."

Quinn held back a smirk. Glee was certainly not a 'passing fancy' for one Rachel Berry. Everyone at McKinley High could attest to that.

"Rach, how about you go on ahead with your friends? Your father and I will head home. Just be backhome by 11:30. It _is_ a school night." Rachel's taller father said interrupting the pair,glancing around them before placing a hand on Rachel's shoulder to calm her down.

"Jay! Stop coddling her. If she wants any real future, sacrifices need to be made." Levi argued, his hand on his hip.

James Berry sighed and averted his gaze from his husband. "Do you think you could get a lift home?" He asked Rachel as he ignored Levi's scoff and subsequent slap of the program against his thigh.

Quinn had unfortunately timed her appearance to coincide with James' question.

Rachel saw Quinn approaching out of the corner of her eye. She knew she'd have to face the consequences of her actions later this evening, but she _needed_ this. She _needed_ to spend some time with her teammates and her schedule had already been interrupted by the invitational and it only seemed logical that any other interruptions would be limited to just_this_ evening.

"Quinn can take me home." Rachel immediately announced causing Quinn to stumble.

Quinn straightened up and quickly smoothed out her dress before turning almost sheepishly toward the Berry's. "Um..." _Articulate, much?_

Levi Berry eyed the blonde with a hint of dislike.

Rachel took a few steps to her right, stopping at Quinn's side. She glanced at Quinn who met her gaze head on. Quinn couldn't be entirely certain, but it definitely looked like Rachel was begging her for something.

"Quinn will drive me home." Rachel announced to the small group again. She turned to gently wrap her hand around Quinn's unsuspecting arm to storm away. All Quinn could do was follow behind the short brunette. As they passed Rachel's father, he reached out and grabbed hold of Rachel's arm.

"We'll discuss this later."

This time, Quinn quickly identified the emotion flashing intently across Rachel's gaze. _Fear_.

**& ! & ! &**

At exactly 11:10pm, Quinn and Rachel left their friends laughing and joking at _Fat Jack's Pizza_. The entire ride to the Berry household was filled with an awkward and tense silence. John Mayer's 2001 _Room For Squares_ album played through Quinn's car stereo and Quinn couldn't help but tap her fingers to the beat of _Back To You_.

"_Leave the light on, I'll never give up on you, leave the light on, for me too, for me too..."_

When Quinn pulled up to the curb outside Rachel's house, the song was coming to a close and the time read 11:23pm on the dashboard. Quinn turned the engine off, the stereo still powered up and playing. Quinn looked passed Rachel's quiet form and out the window to see the porch light on. From what she'd heard and seen earlier that evening, Quinn could just imagine Mr. Berry standing in the hallway, arms crossed, checking the time every ten to fifteen seconds.

"So..." Quinn said as she shifted uncomfortably in her seat.

Rachel just sat quietly in the passenger seat. She didn't even make a move to unbuckle her seatbelt.

Quinn had never experienced such a quiet and motionless Rachel Berry. She wasn't quite sure what to do about it either. "It's uh... We're here," she said stating the obvious. Quinn mentally rolled her eyes at her unusual lack of tact.

"I still have five and a half minutes." Rachel responded immediately, stubbornly crossing her arms over her chest.

Quinn dropped her hands from the steering wheel. She really didn't know how to deal with a petulant Rachel. She also never thought she'd be in a position where Rachel's emotional state would be of her concern. "Do you want to talk about it?" Quinn asked regretting the words as soon as she spoke them.

Rachel snapped her head to the left. "There's nothing to talk about," she immediately responded, her brow furrowed in obvious confusion at Quinn's question.

Quinn just nodded her head and looked out the windshield. If Rachel didn't want to talk about it, she sure as hell wasn't going to invite any more drama into her life.

The clock now read 11:25pm and the girls just sat in silence as John Mayer began crooning about the great indoors.

"This was a good album." Rachel suddenly commented.

Quinn just nodded her head in agreement. "Mhm."

"I particularly like the message the artist is attempting to convey in the track, _No Such Thing_." Rachel continued on. "It's important that today's youth realize their potential and don't allow the pressure from parents or peers lead them astray."

Quinn gave Rachel a side-long glance and replied uncertainly. "Yeah... sure." _Was this Rachel's way of talking about her emotions? _It would be typical that Rachel Berry could only talk in terms of messages in music.

They sat in silence for a few more minutes just staring out the windshield into the cold, dark night.

At exactly 11:29, Rachel sighed and unbuckled her seatbelt. She reached for the door handle and began to climb out of Quinn's car. Just before closing the door behind her, she leaned down and muttered a quick 'thanks'.

Quinn sat watching Rachel Berry hurry up the walkway toward her front door. She only started the engine when she saw Rachel slip through the small crack between the door and the entryway.


	5. Part 4: Cold Hard Bitch

Author's Note: Thanks to Nilea, joan0md, gleeful612, smartblonde317, Cam05 and Ad3n for reading and leaving feedback. I'm sorry it's taken me so long to say thank you. It's probably one of my biggest flaws – I suck at getting back to people when they leave feedback. It's not that I don't appreciate your words, cause I honestly do. I'm just… really really lazy and easily distracted. Quinn and Rachel have a long road ahead of them, but I hope you'll stick with the story anyway (even if some of you have tracked it down on my LJ). This is a fic I really would like to finish, but I hate that it will probably take me a while. Thank you all again for reading and leaving feedback. :)

**Part Four:**

**& ! & ! &**

"Oh... it's _you_." Judy Fabray muttered as she entered the kitchen, three shiny designer bags hanging off her left arm. She placed her keys on the kitchen counter before carefully placing the bags next to them.

Quinn barely glanced at her mother before refocusing her attention back to the snack she was preparing.

"What are you _doing_?" Judy suddenly blurted out as she watched Quinn spread peanut butter over a slice of bread. Quinn ignored her mother as she made sure the peanut butter covered the corners of the slice. "I asked you a question," Judy continued, taking a step forward, her left hand instantly finding her hip.

Quinn sighed. "What does it look like I'm doing?" She answered with a mental eye roll before unscrewing the lid on the jelly. She wiped the knife on a piece of paper towel before dipping it into the jar. With a small smile Quinn began to spread the sweet substance over a second piece of bread.

"It looks like you're about to stuff your face with an unhealthy mix of trans fats and sugar." Judy began to get frustrated at the lack of response from her daughter. "If you're hell-bent on letting yourself go, the least you could do is pick something a little less cliché than gaining fifty pounds."

Quinn ignored her mother and with a small feeling of excitement she put the sandwich together. Using the knife she cut a diagonal line through her sandwich.

"Well?" Her mother asked both hands on her hips now. When Quinn ignored her and began to cut a second diagonal line through her sandwich, Judy Fabray practically growled before snatching up her bags and keys and storming out of the kitchen.

Quinn grinned down at her sandwich now perfectly cut into four triangles. She quickly cleaned up after herself, replacing the peanut butter and jelly and washing the knife she'd used. She wiped down the counter before taking her sandwich-filled plate with her up to her room.

She'd been living back home since the 2nd of April. Exactly three days after her daughter, Elizabeth (Ellie) Fabray, had been born and legally adopted by the Johnsons.

Quinn ignored the sound of her mother storming around in her parents' bedroom and took a seat at her desk. She picked up a triangular piece of her sandwich and took a small bite as her gaze instantly found the photo of her daughter sitting in a plain black frame on her desk.

Reaching out, Quinn picked up the frame and brought it close to the edge of the desk. Shifting in her chair, she brought her knees up to her chest and firmly planted her heels on the edge of her seat. She took a second, bigger bite into her sandwich as she stared at the photo beneath the plate of glass.

Ellie Fabray – no, Ellie Johnson now, was nearing ten months and had already started walking. Her first birthday was coming up and Quinn made a mental note to start looking for presents. Her daughter had luckily inherited many of her mother's physical traits – blonde hair, hazel eyes and fair skin. Puck was ecstatic over the fact that Ellie's hair was growing in the shape of a Mohawk though. From what Quinn had read, this was common in children, but Puck insisted it was genetics.

Quinn didn't have the heart to tell him that just because _he_ might style his hair in a particular way didn't mean that it could be passed down in genes.

She smiled as she remembered holding Ellie's hand as they slowly walked around the playground, bundled up against the winter chill in coats, beanies and gloves. They had been lucky that visit as the sky had cleared and the sun shone down on them and even though the air was crisp and chilled, the weather had allowed them some time to go exploring through the park.

Sarah and Alex Johnson were the last in a long line of couples that had hoped to adopt Ellie. The search had taken months and contributed to the tension that continued to grow between Puck and herself. She'd moved in with Puck after Sectionals since Finn had asked her to find other living arrangements. She'd been sleeping in Puck's room while he camped out on the couch. The situation wasn't ideal for anyone, especially Elaine Puckerman who had grudgingly allowed Quinn to live with them only out of a sense of duty. Quinn knew that if Mrs. Puckerman could have had her way, this child would have belonged to a nice Jewish girl, like _Rachel Berry_.

The main source of tension brewing between Puck and Quinn had been caused by Quinn's determination to find a family for Elizabeth. Puck couldn't understand how Quinn could so easily give up their daughter. At the conclusion of one particularly heated argument, Quinn found herself searching for yet another set of living arrangements.

"_But they live __**here**__! We could see her all the time!" Puck argued as he slammed his open hand against the row of lockers they were standing next to. Quinn noticed a group of freshman whispering and pointing as they walked by. This was not the ideal location for another argument with Puck._

"_That's not the point! She needs a good family! The Allens' already have three children. I want her to go to a family that I think will give her all the attention she deserves. Don't you?" Quinn argued back as she grabbed her Alegbra II text from her locker. She held the book to her chest before slamming the locker door closed to turn away from Puck. She took a few steps down the hall and away from him._

_She didn't make it far before Puck jumped in front of her, blocking her path, his body close to hers and his arm resting against the lockers. "She's my daughter too."_

_Quinn met Puck's hurt and angry stare. "__**I know that**__," she replied with conviction. "We're going with an open adoption because I want you to be able to visit her. __**I**__ want to visit her. But I want her out of Lima. She needs a better start to her life than what this town can offer." Quinn said before moving around Puck's sturdy form._

_Puck watched as she began to walk away from him again, dismissing him. "Quinn Fabray, you're a cold-hearted bitch." He saw her step falter but she didn't stop to defend herself. She just continued on to Algebra II._

Puck's words had been the deciding factor. She'd been contemplating finding other arrangements when their arguments had begun to move toward shouting matches at all hours of the night. Puck didn't know it, but his words had broken her. He assumed that giving up Ellie was the easiest decision she had made during the entire pregnancy, but it was the hardest. She loved her daughter, more than she was willing to admit and the decision to give her up was not taken lightly. They'd worked their way through four couples already and none of them had measured up to the family she wanted Ellie to grow up in.

She really had been trying to provide the best future she could for her daughter and if it meant getting her out of Lima and only being able to visit her once every year or two, then so be it. Her daughter needed her to make the right decision about this.

The three months leading up to Elizabeth's birth were spent living in the spare room at the Hummel's house behind the family garage. Burt had been sympathetic to her cause and had commented that had Kurt's mother still been alive, she would have definitely welcomed Quinn into their home. Quinn appreciated that Mr. Hummel was providing her with a roof to live under as some sort of ode to his late wife's memory and so she made sure to pull her weight around the house cooking and cleaning.

Living with the Hummels had definitely been an eye-opening experience for her. She'd learned how to adjust the hem on a pair of pants, change the air filter on her car and cross-stitch. Although _all_ very important life lessons, Quinn found she learned what it meant to be a real family while living with Kurt and his dad. Dinner was eaten sitting close together around the kitchen table wherein Kurt and Mr Hummel were genuinely interested in how her day had been. They took turns cooking breakfast in the mornings and set aside weekends where Kurt would drag them shopping for a shirt or pair of shoes he'd seen and thought they just 'had to have' in their wardrobe.

Quinn's circle of friends had expanded considerably by living with Kurt. Brittany and Santana had been welcomed into the Hummel home and Kurt had practically died from sheer excitement when he found himself in the seldom-breeched 'in' crowd. Mercedes had slowly worked her way into the fold and soon day-long shopping trips and Mani/Pedi Parties became the norm for the Hummel household.

Even now, living back at the Fabray's, she found her social calendar was just as full as it had been before she'd been pregnant with Elizabeth.

The buzzing of her iPhone startled Quinn out of her thoughts. Quickly putting the photo back in its place on her desk, she reached for her phone and let her feet drop to the floor. She pressed the menu button at the bottom and slid her thumb across the screen.

_My place. 8. Be there._ The message read.

Quinn rolled her eyes before pressing lightly on the screen to reply. _Deep throat, much? ;)_

_Puck never complained,_ was the instant reply. Quinn's whole body shuddered at the implications.

_Ew._

_Just be here._

Quinn grinned at Santana's text before checking the time and realizing she still had a few hours to finish her homework assignment for English. Setting aside her sandwich, she reached for her English folder and _To Kill a Mockingbird_. She looked over the essay question she had been assigned to answer:

**Discuss the concept of family and Lee's presentation of the American family. What does it consist of?**

Quinn folded her arms and let her body sink into her chair before resting her forehead on her arms. _Great_. She took a few minutes for herself before sitting up and flipping through her folder to look for the notes she'd taken during class. They had touched on her essay topic briefly earlier that day. When she located her notes she found them lacking and growled in frustration. She tried to think back to why she'd been distracted and had missed so much on the topic.

She remembered Mrs. Gilbert prattling on about community expectations. How in such a small town it was the norm for parents to raise their children to be like them and that it was difficult to resist living up or down to those expectations. Quinn remembered understanding all too well what it would have been like in Lee's portrayal of Maycomb County. Sometimes, Quinn felt Lima was a little too similar. Sure, some kids made it out of there but more often than not, once a Lima-loser, always a Lima-loser.

Suddenly she remembered why she'd been distracted.

_Quinn sat furiously scribbling down all that their teacher Mrs. Gilbert was saying. She was focusing on the theme of 'family' in relation to the text and Quinn knew she needed as much information as she could get down for her essay._

_Quinn set her pen down quickly to switch to her green highlighter. She ignored her pen rolling off her folder and onto the floor trying to hurriedly highlight the last note she'd taken. She capped her highlighter and bent down to the side of her desk to search the floor close to her feet for her pen. She eventually spied it lying beneath the crossed legs of the person to her right. Reaching out to scoop up the pen, she suddenly recognised the white knee high socks and argyle skirt barely reaching mid-thigh. As she began to pull herself back up, Mrs. Gilbert droning on in the background, she noticed Rachel's head propped up on her hand, her eyes closed, breathing deep and even. In her right hand, she had her pen poised ready to write, but as Quinn glanced at Rachel's folder, the page was almost completely blank save for a title and date._

_Although bent over in an awkward position, Quinn craned her head to the left to find Mrs. Gilbert walking toward the back of the classroom, two aisles over. Using the end of her pen, Quinn poked Rachel in the side._

_Rachel startled awake and with a confusing question on her face she glanced to her left to lock eyes with Quinn who straightened herself up. Quinn shot her a pointed look as Rachel quickly averted her gaze down to her folder._

_Quinn sat confused for a few seconds, staring at Rachel's profile as she began to furiously write. She sat immobile for a few seconds trying to remember when Rachel Berry had been assigned the seat next to hers in English._

Quinn tapped her pen against the top of her desk as she stared at her incomplete notes. If she hadn't seen it for herself, she would never have thought that Rachel Berry would ever fall asleep in _any_ class, even if she found the class to be 'lacking in appropriate instruction and content' – Rachel's words, not hers.

She thought back to Wednesday night and the argument she'd overheard coupled with Rachel's reluctance to exit her car until the last possible moment. Ignoring her essay, she reached for her phone again. She chalked up her Rachel Berry distraction as avoidance and quickly dialled Brittany's number.

The phone rang three times before she heard some giggling and a soft moan Quinn was sure sounded like a drawn out 'S'.

"Brittany? Ignore Santana's mouth for a minute. I need to ask you something." Quinn said as way of greeting.

A few more giggles were heard and then a light-hearted voice came through the line. "Do I ignore her hands too?"

Quinn rolled her eyes at her two best friends. "Yes, B. Just for a minute. I need to ask you something about Rachel."

Quinn heard some shuffling, an exclamation followed by a pained groan. "Sorry, S. It's Quinn."

"Juno! Get your own girlfriend!" Quinn heard through the phone line and ignored it. Santana was known to be cranky when she was deprived of sex for too long. Well, cramkier than usual anyway.

"B?" Quinn called out softly to get Brittany's attention again.

"What did you want to know?" Brittany asked her full attention on Quinn.

Quinn ignored her subconscious telling her it was none of her business. "At the invitational, what did you overhear exactly? From Rachel's parents?"

"Um... oh!" Brittany exclaimed. Quinn could practically hear Brittany's grin as she recalled the conversation she'd overheard in as much detail as she could provide.

"They were talking about MySpace videos?" Quinn asked confused about why Rachel's dads would care about whether Rachel recorded and uploaded a video that night.

"Mhm! And Rachel's dad was pissed because there wasn't time for her to practice the piano before making the next video." Brittany recalled with a nod of her head that Quinn couldn't see through the phone.

Quinn was still confused. She quickly thanked Brittany and hung up the phone, but not before reassuring Brittany she would be over at 8 o'clock that night. Staring at her phone, Quinn thought over the information she had so far. _MySpace videos?_ Quinn quickly closed her folder, dropped it to the floor by her desk and pulled her laptop closer to her before lifting the lid and turning the device on.

She quickly navigated to MySpace and logged in. She hadn't been on the site in almost two years, since around the time she'd found out she was pregnant and leaving Rachel Berry insults on her videos had become less of a priority. It was easy to find Rachel's page in her bookmarks. Rachel had recorded and uploaded over two hundred videos and as Quinn scrolled down the page, she noticed the date on the most recent video. Thursday, 3:27am - the morning after the invitational.


	6. Part 5: Ride

**Author's Note:** Just wanted to say a big thanks to everyone who is reading. I realize these are just reposts, but I am nearing the end of school for the year (finals are next week), and then I only need worry about work and moving house, so I'm hoping with the extra free time, I'll continue adding new parts to this fic. Thanks again for reading along. :)

**Part Five:**

**& ! & ! &**

Monday morning saw Quinn running late for school. She'd over slept which wasn't normal for her, but she'd spent most of Sunday afternoon over at Brittany's house and hadn't gotten home until just before curfew at 10pm. Staying out late wasn't foreign to Quinn anymore. Before her pregnancy she'd been a stickler for the rules, only bending them when she knew she wouldn't be caught. Since moving back into the Fabray residence she'd managed to find a multitude of excuses to stay away from the house.

As she drove at exactly the speed limit down N Mc Donel St., slowing to turn right onto W Wayne St., she glanced at the time on her dashboard 7:17am. She had less than twelve minutes to get to school and first period. She saw the turn for N Jackson St. and slowed to allow a few cars to drive past at the T intersection. Quinn growled when the last car drove by at a snail's pace. Just after the turn she spotted a small figure furiously striding down the street, arms swinging at her sides. Quinn recognised the knee socks and the bright pink winter coat.

Quinn rolled her eyes as she realized she was already pulling up beside the girl. She quickly leaned over the center console to wind down the passenger's window. "Berry!" She yelled out. Rachel faltered in her stride slightly, her left arm coming up to shield her face from oncoming projectiles.

Quinn sighed as she lightly pressed her foot down on the accelerator, inching the car slowly down the road. She was glad this was a residential street as traffic this early in the morning was practically non-existent. "Berry!" She tried again. Rachel kept her left arm up, her legs increasing in speed down the sidewalk.

"Stubborn ass," Quinn muttered as she accelerated passed Rachel before parking the car, leaving the engine running. Quinn opened her car door and hurried out onto the sidewalk. The air was cold and she wasn't wearing her coat. She wrapped her arms around her middle and hurried to stand in Rachel's path. "Berry!" She yelled for the third time.

Rachel pulled up short, her right arm stretched out in front of her, a small black canister clenched in her fist, finger on the nozzle.

Quinn squeaked and thanked her years of cheerleading for quick reflexes as she dropped to the ground, her arms coming up to cover her head.

Time moved painfully slow as both girls waited with baited breath for the other to make a move.

Ten seconds went by – Quinn counted – before she started to feel uncomfortable cowering on the ground in the middle of the sidewalk. She took her time and slightly lowered one of her arms just enough for her to peak out over the top of her elbow.

"Quinn?" Rachel suddenly questioned, her brow furrowed in confusion. "What are you doing?"

Quinn let out a growl as she pulled herself up into a standing position. She brushed off her jeans and cardigan, trying to stamp down her anger. "What do you _think_ I'm doing?" She asked finally meeting Rachel's gaze, her right hand pointing in the direction of her still running car.

Rachel's eyes widened in surprise. She looked from Quinn, to Quinn's car and then back to Quinn again. She hurriedly stashed the pepper spray keychain attached to her house keys back into her coat pocket. "Are you ok?" She suddenly asked taking three quick steps toward Quinn.

The blonde quickly took a giant step back as Rachel invaded her personal space. "Woah," she said holding up both hands to halt Rachel in her forward advancement.

Rachel ducked her head briefly before she straightened her spine and shoulders. "You _really_ shouldn't have snuck up on me like that. I could have done a lot of damage if you hadn't ducked in time."

"You carry _pepper spray_?" Quinn suddenly asked. She didn't wait for the brunette to answer before throwing her hands up in the air. "You're crazy!" She exclaimed before heading back toward her car.

Rachel took a tentative step in Quinn's direction. She was utterly embarrassed by her reaction. She opened her mouth to apologize, but Quinn was already safely tucked away in her car. She watched dejectedly as Quinn began to drive off. She bowed her head, adjusted her backpack and set off on the rest of her journey, her pace significantly slower than before.

"Great," she muttered as she kicked at a loose pebble on the sidewalk. She allowed to the count of five for a self-pity party before standing tall and resuming her earlier pace. She didn't even want to think about how late she was going to be. On the next block she found Quinn standing in her path again, arms crossed, foot tapping impatiently on the ground. Rachel began to open her mouth to speak but Quinn quickly cut her off.

"Get in the car," the blonde ordered and without a backward glance Quinn headed back to the driver's side.

Rachel hurried her steps and practically threw herself into the front seat. She held her backpack to her chest and buckled her seatbelt.

Quinn checked the side mirror before pulling out onto the road. The journey was quiet and awkward, much like their first car ride together the week before. Quinn glanced over at Rachel and for the first time took a good look at the short brunette. There were dark circles under her eyes, her hair was limp and her shoulders were hunched over. Quinn made a mental note to check Rachel's MySpace page during her free period for any new videos and time stamps.

Quinn kept her eyes on the road but let her gaze flicker over to Rachel every few seconds. "So..." she started, "what else do you carry in your bag of tricks?"

Rachel looked startled for a second before grinning over at Quinn. "Well," she began her head held high with pride, "I carry pepper spray on a keyring, as you already know. I have a second one in my backpack, just in case. I also carry a rape whistle and Daddy managed to acquire a mini stun gun for me."

Quinn shot Rachel a side-long glance. "A... _stun gun_?"

"It's hot pink!" Rachel exclaimed in excitement.

"Pink?" Quinn questioned, unsure how to respond to Rachel's enthusiasm over a weapon.

Rachel unzipped the front pocket of her backpack. She rifled around for a few seconds before pulling out a bright pink stun gun. "Technically it's an ultra petite mini stun gun with low voltage but with just enough amperage to deliver the intended message to would-be attackers."

Quinn swallowed visibly as Rachel pressed her finger to the button on the side eliciting electric shock sounds from the device. "What does... what does your father _do_, exactly?" She asked, her gaze flitting from the road to the stun gun.

"Oh! He's in law enforcement." Rachel replied, beaming with pride. She carefully slipped the mini stun gun back into the front pocket of her backpack and folded her arms.

"Your dad's a cop?" Quinn asked in surprise. She honestly had never pictured either of Rachel's fathers as a _cop_.

"Mhm." Rachel replied with a nod of her head. "But we prefer the term 'Officer of the Law'."

"Uh-huh. Of course you do." Quinn replied with a slight nod.

**& ! & ! &**

Over the course of the next week, Quinn made note of the small changes occurring in Rachel. It seemed that, since the night of the Invitational, Rachel became increasingly tired, prone to mood swings and in the classes they shared together, Rachel spent most of the hour with her head resting in her hand, her notebooks mostly empty.

The blonde sighed as she spied Rachel's head drooping in second period English on Friday morning. She turned away and focused on Mrs. Gilbert. Quinn honestly had no idea what the old woman was going on about, but she continued to diligently record notes, even when the lecture strayed onto a story about a vacation Mrs. Gilbert had taken in Alabama with her husband fifteen years ago.

When the bell finally sounded, signifying the end of the period, Quinn quickly gathered her pens and highlighters and closed up her folder. Glancing to her right Rachel remained in the same position, head resting on her left hand, pen poised in her right. Quinn was slightly reluctant in even entertaining _thoughts_ of waking the girl, especially after the pepper spray greeting she'd received on Monday.

Quinn piled her copy of _To Kill a Mockingbird_ on top of her binder. She looked around and noticed that the room had almost completely emptied. Standing, she picked up her things and held them tight to her chest. She tucked her chair in before turning toward a still sleeping Rachel. She took a deep breath and mentally debated the merits of waking the girl.

On one hand, if she woke the girl, she might have to fight off a stun gun attack, but on the other hand, if _she_ were the one sleeping through the bell, she'd want to be woken up to avoid any further embarrassment, like possible drooling. Quinn quietly walked around the brunette's desk and leaned down to check for any pools of drool on the desktop. Nothing. _Yet_.

Noticing the uncomfortable position Rachel's head was in, she rolled her eyes. Of course the thought of a sore neck would be the deciding factor in whether to wake a sleeping dragon. Quinn took a step back, made sure there was ducking space, pulled out a pen and stretched her arm out, her torso leaning back as she poked Rachel in the side.

The brunette snorted softly, but remained sleeping.

"Are you kidding me?" Quinn asked the now empty room. She tried to poke her again, but all Rachel did was lay her arm on the table and bury her head in the crook of her elbow. Quinn looked down at the pen in her hand and almost contemplated throwing it at the girl, but she worried she might not get the pen back.

"Berry!" Quinn said forcefully. Rachel just buried her head further into her arm. Quinn practically threw her hands up in the air in frustration. "Forget it," she muttered before heading for the door. The girl could fend for herself. Just as she turned out of the room, an idea struck her. Taking a step backward she looked back in on the girl still sleeping.

"Oh my God!" She yelled. "It's Barbra Streisand!"

Suddenly Rachel's body jumped. Her knee hit the underside of her desk, her head jerked up and her eyes quickly scanned the classroom. "Babs?" She called out as her right hand came up to wipe at her mouth.

Quinn grinned as she hurried out of view. She scurried quickly to her next class, shaking her head in amusement. But by the time she took a seat in Mr. Schuester's Spanish class, the amusement had been replaced with mild concern. Even at her busiest, Rachel had never fallen asleep in class. As Mr. Schuester began the lesson, Quinn mentally shook her head of any thoughts pertaining to the brunette. Rachel Berry's well-being really wasn't any of her concern.

**& ! & ! &**

When the bell rang at 2:30pm, Quinn couldn't have been happier. Her parents had informed her, by post-it note, that they were spending the weekend at a _Christian Couples Retreat_. Quinn was sure it was probably just an opportunity to down as many bottles of vodka, scotch and brandy as possible, but the end result was still the same. She had the house to herself for one gloriously long weekend.

She kept her parents 'couples retreat' a secret from her friends. She knew if Puck caught wind of her lack of supervision, she would be answering the door to three kegs, a cooler or two of wine coolers and fifty partially inebriated teenagers come Saturday night.

Quinn pushed and shoved her way through the throngs of teenagers desperately trying to escape the halls of McKinley High to get a jump start on their weekend plans. When she finally made it to her locker, she looked to her right and found Rachel hurriedly rifling through her things. Quinn couldn't help but think about how Rachel just seemed to be _everywhere_ these days. Most of her classes were shared with Rachel, her locker was half a dozen down from her own, her homeroom was across from Rachel's and they had even been crossing paths between classes they _didn't_ share.

She watched Rachel for a few minutes wondering what the shorter girl could possibly be searching for so furiously.

**& ! & ! &**

"Where is it? Where is it? _Where is it?_" Rachel mumbled to herself as she moved folders back and forth, lifted text books and even looked behind the pink sparkly belt she had hanging in her locker. "Damn!" She swore as she angrily slammed her locker door closed. She'd left her Vocal folder at home and her father was going to kill her. She glanced at her phone and saw it was already 2:38pm. "Shit!" she muttered as she realized she was already three minutes late. She quickly opened her locker again, grabbed a stack of books and a blue folder before she slammed it closed again. Clutching the books to her chest, she ducked and weaved her way through the throngs of students. Being short did have its advantages.

Just as she made it to the front doors, she spotted her father standing at the open doorway, his arms crossed over his chest. Rachel's heart began to beat hard against her chest. He did not look impressed with her tardiness at all. Her step faltered as his eyes found hers. She quickly gathered speed. As soon as she was in reach his hand snapped out and grabbed her elbow.

She opened her mouth to apologize profusely for her lateness and inform him of her forgotten folder when he shot her a warning look. Rachel ducked her head and hurriedly tried to keep up with her father's long strides.

They were almost to the car when Rachel yanked her elbow out of his hand. She covered it up with a stumble but she could see her father suspected she'd pulled away on purpose. He let his arm drop to his side and just stood staring at his daughter for a few tense moments. "Get in the car," he said, his voice low.

Rachel just watched as he made his way to the driver's side. She stood contemplating whether she should get in the car or not. She knew she had Jazz class in fifteen minutes and they were already running late, but in that moment, she didn't care. She watched as her father settled behind the wheel and buckled his seatbelt. She met his eyes through the windshield. When his eyes narrowed slightly, Rachel ignored her desire to run and quickly hurried to the passenger side and got in.

Levi Berry turned the engine on and drove out of the parking lot before Rachel even had a chance to reach for her seatbelt.

Quinn stood on the front steps and watched as they drove away. "Crap," she muttered. She was really hoping that everything she'd seen had been a series of coincidences. She really didn't want to involve herself in Rachel Berry's drama when she had bucket loads of her own. Bringing a hand up to her forehead, she ran her fingers through her hair before growling at her conscience. "Dammit," she whispered as she turned back toward the front doors of the school.


	7. Part 6: No Business Like Show Business

Title: I'm Still Waiting for the Rain to Fall  
>Author: anan0maly<br>Summary: _...pour real life down on me..._  
>Pairing: Eventual RachelQuinn  
>Rating: PG to NC-17<br>Word Count: 49,000+ (so far)  
>Disclaimer: I don't own these characters unfortunately. Title belongs to Evanescence's <em>'Good Enough'<em>.  
>Betas: My friends Aimee and Alma. :) Thank you both so so much.<p>

**Part Six:**

**& ! & ! &**

Quinn woke early on Saturday morning to a completely silent house. She smiled lazily as she pulled the covers up to her chin and buried her head in her pillow. The sun filtered through her sheer curtains illuminating her room. It was cold out, but with the heating on, Quinn felt warm and safe in her bed.

The buzzing of her phone against the wood of her bedside table disturbed the quiet of her room. Quinn slowly reached an arm out to her phone. As soon as she had it in her grasp she quickly snapped her arm back and buried it under the covers. The difference in temperature caused goosebumps to rise on her arm and neck.

She pressed the center button on her iPhone then slid her thumb across the screen. A text message from Brittany greeted her.

'_Valerie Stephens is fighting S for Head Cheerio. Lunch at 'Soup's On' later?'_

Quinn reread the message three times. Checking the time at the top of her screen she saw it was 8:56am. _'Why are you guys up so early?'_

She only had to wait a few seconds for a reply. _'*You're* up. Lunch?'_ Quinn rolled her eyes.

'_I haven't had breakfast yet. I'll get back to you.'_

Quinn would normally have jumped at the chance to get out of the house and meet up for lunch with Brittany and Santana, even if they did spend almost the entire time sitting in each other's laps, hands fumbling under the table. But today Quinn was contemplating a different set of plans. Last night she'd tried to concentrate on her Spanish homework, but her thoughts had continued to drift to Rachel Berry. Try as she might not to involve herself, she couldn't help but think that Rachel needed a stern talking to about controlling parents.

She continued to lie in bed for another half an hour devising a plan of attack, because that's exactly what it would be - an attack, of sorts.

Apart from the night of the Invitational, Quinn had only ever met the Berrys once before. She knew that just turning up on their doorstep would seem suspicious, especially as she and Rachel were barely acquaintances in _and_ out of Glee. Before Elizabeth had been born there might have been an opportunity for the two to forge a tentative friendship, but being kicked out of Finn's house, living with the Hummels and her issues with Puck had forced her to focus on the baby's needs. The friendships she'd formed with Kurt and Mercedes had been born out of proximity rather than necessity, but she didn't regret them.

If she were to be invited into the Berry home she would need a good excuse, and an appropriate wardrobe. She didn't think the Berry's would mind all that much about her attire, but she was trying to make a good impression and if her parents had taught her anything at all, 90% of a good impression was dependent on wardrobe.

Sighing, Quinn knew she'd have to slip into one of her dresses. She hadn't worn a dress since Ellie had been born. She'd made a conscious effort to stick to jeans and t-shirts since moving back home because she loved the twitch in her mother's eye when Judy would notice Quinn's less than feminine attire.

Finally deciding it was probably time to get out of bed; Quinn made a move for the kitchen to prepare some brunch. It was already nearing 10am and she still needed to eat, shower and change before heading over to Rachel's.

**& ! & ! &**

Quinn smoothed down her hair and then her dress. She picked up her English folder and book from the front step and held them against her hip in her left hand. She took a deep breath and pressed the doorbell.

"_There's no business like show business, like no business I know."_

"Oh my God," Quinn whispered to herself as the lyrics reached her ears, slightly muffled through the front door. She wondered how she was even surprised at anything Berry-related anymore. As the seconds ticked by and there was no answer, she began to fidget.

Quinn suddenly realized that this was probably, most likely, a really bad idea. Just as she began to turn around and head back home, the front door swung open to reveal Rachel's tall, dark-skinned father.

"Hi!" Quinn greeted in a perky voice spinning back around to face Mr. Berry. She lifted her right hand up in a sort of wave while James narrowed his eyes at her.

Quinn was worried by his look when his face suddenly brightened and he grinned down at her. "Quinn, right?" He asked opening the door wider.

Quinn nodded with a smile. Her heart rate was slightly elevated and she held back a sigh of relief at his friendly tone. "I was wondering if Rachel was home? We have English together and I was wondering if I could borrow her notes." She moved her books to cover her front and shuffled her feet slightly.

A small frown came over James' face. "Rachel's at her dance class, but she should be home in about twenty minutes. Did you want to come in and wait? Have you had lunch?" He asked as he stood to the side and held his arm out, inviting her inside.

"Um..." she began, chewing on her bottom lip. She hadn't anticipated how welcoming Rachel's father would be. She also wasn't sure if she could survive twenty minutes inside the Berry house. "Maybe I should come back?" She asked with uncertainty and a thumb pointing toward her car.

James shook a hand in front of his face as if to wave her suggestion off. "Nonsense. I just made chocolate chocolate-chip cupcakes. They_ need_ to be eaten."

Before she could protest further, Quinn found herself being ushered past the front entrance, down the hall adorned with family portraits and toward the kitchen.

"Sit, sit," James said guiding Quinn into a stool at the kitchen island. She placed her folder and book down on the counter top before returning her hands to her lap.

"With or without frosting?" He asked as he placed two trays of cupcakes in front of her.

Quinn thought about the look on her mother's face had she been present. Judy Fabray would have turned her nose up at either choice, but she would have commented on the sugar and fat content in the frosting. Quinn reached for a cupcake with what looked like vanilla frosting.

"Oooh, good choice," James said, his eyes lighting up. "Don't mind if I eat one too."

Quinn smiled a little as she held her cupcake in her left hand. She used the index finger on her right hand to swipe a little of the frosting off the top to taste it. She couldn't help the involuntary moan that escaped at the delicious taste and texture of the confectionary.

"That good?" James asked with a glint in his eye.

Quinn nodded as she took a second, bigger swipe of the frosting. "I craved vanilla while I was preg - " Quinn looked down at the countertop. Talking about her teen pregnancy probably was on the list of things _not_ to talk about when trying to make a good impression. "I just really like vanilla," she finished softly as she toyed with the paper wrapped around the bottom of the cupcake. She wasn't embarrassed about Elizabeth, not anymore. She loved her daughter and she had made hard choices to ensure she could provide Ellie with the possibility of a promising future, but she was still subjected to sidelong glances and judging stares.

"How _is_ your daughter?" James asked with a small smile. "Rachel told us it was an open adoption?"

Quinn sat stunned for a few seconds. She didn't think Rachel knew much about the baby or the adoption. She'd never discussed it with her and it really hadn't been a glee topic of conversation. "Uh, yeah," she began slowly. "Puck and I decided to go with an open adoption. We wanted to be able to visit her," she replied with a slight nod before looking down at her cupcake again.

James just nodded his head in understanding and offered her a small smile. His eyes drifted to the book sitting atop Quinn's folder. "To Kill a Mockingbird? So they _do_ teach you something worthwhile at that school," he said with a wink.

Quinn grinned. "I guess..." she trailed off. "If you call listening to Mrs. Gilbert talk about her vacation to Old Alabama Town with her husband, worthwhile."

James barked out a laugh in response. "Ah... Mrs. Gilbert. She tried to tell Levi and I that we needed to teach Rachel some restraint. Mentioned something about her inability to keep her hands to herself and voice at an acceptable pitch in class. Can't imagine what she was referring to," he said with another wink and a grin.

Quinn couldn't help but relax in Mr. Berry's presence and for a few seconds she wondered whether there was really anything to worry about with Rachel. But then she remembered the other Mr. Berry's face at school yesterday afternoon and the grip he had on Rachel's elbow. She decided to stick to her original plan. Looks could be deceiving.

The pair was jarred out of their thoughts when the cell phone resting by the sink began to ring and vibrate simultaneously. "Excuse me," James said as he went to answer his phone. Quinn picked at her cupcake only half-listening to the conversation as she let her eyes travel around the kitchen from her vantage point.

To be honest, Rachel's kitchen was fairly standard and ordinary. There were a set of folding doors at the back of the kitchen that opened onto a patio that led to a small backyard. Behind her to the left was a small round kitchen table with four chairs around it, placemats in place and a fruit bowl perfectly centered.

Against one wall was a hutch and buffet. A small, glass, rectangular fish tank sat in the middle of the hutch. Quinn eyed three goldfish in the tank. There was a bright sparkling gold star at the bottom of the tank and Quinn had to roll her eyes. Even the _fish_ had a gold star? Quinn was startled out of her thoughts by James laughing loudly at whatever the person had said on the other line.

"Actually I made a batch of cupcakes this afternoon. I'll bring them into the precinct for tonight's shift," he said with a smile and a wink in Quinn's direction. "Mhm, with vanilla bean infused frosting."

Quinn tried to hide her shock at finding out that it was _this _Mr. Berry that was the cop. Sorry, Officer of the Law. She quickly turned away from Mr. Berry, averting her gaze to the fridge in front of her. Noticing a very detailed schedule, she decided it wouldn't hurt to take a short walk around the kitchen. She saw Mr. Berry turn away from her and stare out the window above the sink. She headed straight for the fridge door and began scanning the color-coded schedule.

Ballet, jazz, hip hop, tap, voice lessons, elliptical, cardio, yoga. The schedule was so precise with timing and locations. Quinn knew exactly what she was looking at and an uncomfortable feeling settled in the pit of her stomach. The schedule was eerily similar to one she'd had taped to the pantry door from the age of 11.

Almost every minute of every day was accounted for. MySpace video time was even scheduled in every evening. Quinn wondered when Rachel had time to herself. It looked like there were a few hours scheduled in on Sundays, but the blonde wondered how much of that time was actually for Rachel to spend doing whatever it was she liked doing.

"It's very detailed, isn't it?" James suddenly asked from over her right shoulder.

Quinn tensed up as she nodded her head slowly in agreement. She'd been so distracted by the schedule she hadn't realized his conversation had ended and he'd crept up behind her. "So, Rachel's at her..." Quinn trailed off as she checked the timetable, "_Hip Hop_ class?" She asked with a tone of disbelief. "Rachel does Hip Hop?" There was no mistaking her tone.

James laughed softly. "For six months now. I think she only does it to please Levi, but she's not a quitter."

"Right." Quinn replied softly as she averted her gaze from the schedule. She began to make her way to the stool she'd been sitting in when loud voices from the front hallway floated into the kitchen.

" – not trying hard enough!" A frustrated masculine voice said loudly.

"I _am_ trying! Even Meaghan can see that!" Quinn heard Rachel reply angrily.

Suddenly the front door slammed shut and there were hurried footsteps running up the stairs.

"Hurry up and shower! We're having lunch soon and we still haven't checked your MySpace comments!" Levi yelled up the stairs.

The slamming of a bedroom door was heard and Quinn ducked her head as she carefully situated herself back on the stool. _Well, this wasn't awkward or anything._

"I don't know what's gotten into that girl," Levi said as he stormed into the kitchen as he slammed his keys down on the small counter space next to the fridge. He suddenly halted when he spotted Quinn at the kitchen island.

"Levi!" James exclaimed with a smile. "Quinn's here to see Rachel," he explained, a hand gesturing in her direction.

Quinn sat up straight, small smile gracing her lips, hands in her lap as she watched as Mr. Berry's eyes flicker between her and James. "Hi," she greeted softly with a slight wave.

Levi raised an eyebrow before offering a nod as greeting in her direction.

James, quick to defuse the tension in the kitchen stepped forward. "Quinn, how about you wait upstairs for Rachel? You'll be able to tell which bedroom is hers," he offered with a smile and a nod of encouragement.

Quinn eyed both of Rachel's fathers before nodding her head slightly. She was perfectly happy to wait in James' presence, but the scowl that was now adorning the shorter Mr. Berry was making her nervous. She quickly gathered her folder and book and held them to her chest. As she exited the kitchen she could hear Mr. Berry, whispering heatedly about her to James.

She quickly and quietly made her way up the stairs all the while thinking she should have just stayed in bed that morning. As she reached the top of the stairs she looked both ways down the hallway. To her left and toward the front of the house she spotted a plain white door with a gold star nameplate drilled into it. No doubt that was Rachel's room.

She made her way to the closed door and knocked softly. There was no response so she tried a second time, only slightly louder. When there was still no answer, Quinn turned the door handle and slowly opened the door, fearing what may lie within. Only Kurt, Finn and Puck had ever been inside Rachel's bedroom, and two of them had been sketchy on details and most anything Kurt said really only pertained to color swatches and patterned fabric. Quinn was mildly curious about what may lie within and so when the door opened to a small hallway with a closed door on the left hand side and an open doorway to the right, she hadn't expected such a layout.

Rachel's room was as bright as Quinn had envisaged. The walls were a pale yellow and the furniture white. Quinn had expected everything to be varying shades of pink and she was mostly correct in her assumption. Besides the wall and furniture, everything was pink – even the mirror above Rachel's vanity. Quinn took a few tentative steps into the bedroom. Rachel's room was _huge_, well, compared to her own at least. She perched carefully and awkwardly on the end of Rachel's bed keeping a tight grip on her things.

She allowed her gaze to travel around the room taking note of the pink electric guitar in the corner. She wondered if Rachel only had the guitar because it was pink or because she actually knew how to play. As she continued her perusal of Rachel's room she noticed the various lamps differing in size, shape and colour. Quinn wasn't sure what the fascination with the lamps was, but she figured it was to do with Rachel's need for constant perfect lighting. As Quinn turned her head over her right shoulder, she spotted Rachel's desk in the small alcove below a window. On the adjacent wall was a large poster of the Broadway production of i_Annie/i_. Raising an eyebrow in interest, she couldn't help but picture a seven year old Rachel trying to convince her parents to dye her hair red and get it permed.

Quinn stumbled out of her thoughts as the click of a latch was heard and suddenly Rachel was striding into the room wrapped in a bright pink fluffy towel, steam billowing behind her.

"Eep!" Rachel squeaked as she clutched at her towel.

Quinn quickly jumped off Rachel's bed and tried to suppress the blush of embarrassment she felt creeping up her neck. Quinn opened her mouth to apologize, but before she could get a word out Rachel spun on her heel and hightailed it back to her bathroom.

Quinn stood awkwardly in the middle of Rachel's bedroom just staring at the closed and locked bathroom door.

Rachel wouldn't normally be embarrassed by being caught in a towel, she _did_ attend gym class on a weekly basis and had four different dance classes a week. She just hadn't expected Quinn Fabray of all people to be in her room. _Wait, Quinn Fabray? _"Quinn?" She yelled questioningly through the closed and locked door.

Quinn raised her eyebrows in amusement at the sound of Rachel's uncertain tone. "Yes?" She replied in a sort of sing-song voice.

"What are you doing here?" Rachel asked as she leaned up against her bathroom door, head resting on the damp surface. She'd had a horrible morning at her hip hop class and the last thing she needed was to deal with Quinn Fabray.

Quinn took a few steps toward the door so she didn't have to yell. "This would be a lot easier if you weren't hiding out in your bathroom," she replied. Although this was looking more and more like one, big, terrible mistake, Rachel was present and it seemed like a 'now or never' opportunity.

There were a few seconds of silence. "I'm naked!" Rachel suddenly exclaimed as she looked down at herself. She may have been wrapped in her favorite pink towel, and normally she'd take any chance she could to show off her favorite belongings, but right at that moment, her favorite towel was _all_ she was wearing.

Quinn rolled her eyes. "We've had the same gym period for two years. You haven't got anything I haven't already seen," Quinn replied. "Just less of it," she mumbled so Rachel couldn't hear. She couldn't believe how ridiculous Rachel was being. Besides, the girl was wrapped in an extra large towel; all the scandalous bits were covered.

"Keep your eyes to yourself, thank you!" Rachel replied offended. She did _not_ want to think about _any_ of her classmates watching her in the showers after PE. It wasn't that she was against lesbianism – she loved the gays! - but really, if you're going to watch a girl undress, at least do it _before_ they're all sweat-soaked and icky.

Quinn dismissively waved her hand at the bathroom door before she walked back to Rachel's bed and dropped her folder and paperback on the mattress. She made her way over to Rachel's chest of drawers and reached for the top drawer. "Do you want some clothes or what?" She asked rudely.

Her question was met with silence and so she pulled open the first drawer to find piles and piles of gold star stickers. "What the -?" she whispered to herself as she rifled through the drawer. "You have a drawer _filled_ with gold star stickers?" She yelled out to Rachel. Her fingers thumbed through the pile. There were tiny gold stars, small gold stars and then there were obscenely _large_ gold stars. Quinn had no idea what Rachel would be signing if she needed a star that could be seen from the moon next to it.

Suddenly the bathroom door opened and Rachel hurried out, her left hand gripping the sides of her towel together against her chest. Her wet hair flicked drops of water on Quinn's neck and face as she pushed Quinn away and quickly slammed her drawer shut. "That's personal! I don't commit breaking and entering into _your _home or_ bedroom_. I would **never** go through your drawers! What an invasion of privacy!" Rachel ranted as she stood guard in front of her drawers, her arms now crossed over her chest, the towel slipping just slightly causing Quinn to raise an eyebrow in amusement at Rachel's indignation. "What are you even _doing _here?"

Rachel couldn't believe how rude Quinn was. Scratch that, yes, she could believe it, but really, hadn't the girl learnt to respect other people's privacy after being pushed off the top of the social ladder all those months ago? Rachel had to wonder where human decency had gone.

Quinn rolled her eyes and turned away from the brunette and headed for the built-in wardrobe behind her.

"Hey!" Rachel protested loudly trying to race after Quinn, but her feet got tangled in the bottom of her towel. She abruptly stopped and yanked at the bottom of her towel, pulling it closer to her body before following after Quinn.

Quinn ignored Rachel's protests as she pulled open two of the doors. "Oh. Wow," she breathed out as her eyes scanned the interior of the wardrobe. Skirts in varying colours and argyle patterns hung on the left, _color coded_. It was like staring at a rainbow. To the right, all her t-shirts were sectioned together, in the same color coding system. In fact, Rachel's dresses, button down shirts and the few pairs of pants she owned were all hung _just right_ and in perfect tonal order.

Quinn turned her head slightly to talk to Rachel, her eyes still trained on the spectacle in front of her. "I think you need to stop meeting with Miss Pillsbury."

It was Rachel's turn to roll her eyes and march over to her wardrobe, brushing past the blonde. She held her towel together with her left hand while she placed her right hand on her hip. She narrowed her eyes and watched as Quinn began to reach into the wardrobe. She quickly slapped Quinn's hand away. "If you're that intent on gaining fashion tips from my wardrobe, I'd much rather prefer it if you kept three feet away from the hangers at all times."

Quinn snorted. "No, no. No fashion tips to be had from _this_ wardrobe," she said with a smirk, her eyes moving from the frowning, and clearly annoyed brunette, to the clothes hanging behind her.

With barely contained frustration Rachel reached inside the wardrobe and pulled out a red and yellow argyle skirt and matching t-shirt. An involuntary look of disgust washed over Quinn's face. It wasn't that the outfit was _awful,_exactly, it was just that Quinn felt the brunette could have chosen a more flattering colour combination.

Rachel held the clothes to her chest against the towel as she shuffled to close her wardrobe doors. She glanced over at Quinn before shuffling toward the next set of double doors. "I am entirely certain your hearing is perfectly fine, so I'll ask for a third time, what are you doing here?"

Quinn crossed her arms and raised an eyebrow at Rachel's tone. "I came to talk to you about English."

Rachel looked confused as she opened up the second double doors to the next section of her wardrobe. There were drawers and shoe racks and Quinn watched as she began to collect undergarments from the left hand side before moving to the right to select appropriate footwear. "Do you need my notes because I have to be honest, I would think you of all people would be taking your education seriously." Rachel honestly couldn't understand why Quinn would need her notes from English, she'd embarrassingly missed most of the classes this week due to lack of sleep.

Quinn snorted as she continued to watch Rachel move about collecting clothes and holding them to her chest while trying to maintain a steady grip on her towel. "Actually, out of the two of us, I think _I_ have the more comprehensive notes from English," she paused as Rachel avoided her pointed look. "Are you sure _you_ don't need to borrow my notes?"

Rachel narrowed her eyes at Quinn. The blonde wasn't deterred by the glare burning through her. "Well?"

"While I appreciate this facade of interest regarding my GPA, my education is the least of your concern," Rachel replied in a hardened tone as she headed for the bathroom to change. "Excuse me."

Quinn sighed as she watched Rachel close and lock the door behind her. Quinn was almost tempted to just leave, but then she remembered the 'conversation' she'd heard when Mr. Berry and Rachel had returned home not fifteen minutes ago. Sighing at the compulsion she felt to stay and stick this out, she took a seat back at the end of Rachel's bed and waited impatiently.

Five minutes went by before Rachel stepped out of her bathroom fully clothed, right down to a pair of knee socks and loafers. Rachel rolled her eyes at the sight of Quinn Fabray still seated on her bed. "Still here, I see." She _really_ didn't have time for Quinn's mind games. She was scheduled to eat lunch with her parents soon and she needed to set up her laptop and chairs for her father and her to read through the MySpace comments.

Quinn grinned, knowing how it would frustrate the short brunette. "Can't get rid of me that easily," she said crossing her legs and straightening her back.

Rachel just grumbled as she turned away from Quinn. She made her way to her vanity and began moving around perfume bottles and make-up accessories.

Quinn watched Rachel move items around only to move them back into their original place. She should have known Rachel wouldn't make this easy. "Do you want to tell me what's going on?" She suddenly asked her tone accusatory. She figured beating around the bush wasn't working, so she might as well try being direct.

Rachel faltered slightly, but quickly recovered. "Going on?" She replied, her back still facing Quinn. Her palms were slightly sweaty and her heart began to pound in her chest. She couldn't understand the reaction her body was having to Quinn's line of questioning.

Quinn stood up and folded her arms across her chest. "I realise Mrs. Gilbert might not be the most engaging or reliable source of information at the best of times, but sleeping through a week's worth of classes begs the question, what is going on?"

Rachel took a deep breath and tried to push down the anger that was beginning to simmer just beneath the surface. She spun around and narrowed her eyes at Quinn. "I don't think - " she began, "actually, I _know_ I don't have to answer to you."

Quinn stood tall as she watched Rachel mirror her stance. "Maybe not, but do you honestly think I'm the only one that's noticed the changes in you?" Quinn asked as she leaned forward slightly.

Rachel bristled at Quinn's observation. She was bordering on furious. How _dare_ Quinn invite herself into her room to harass her? And then just like the flip of a switch, Rachel was furious. Her face went blank and she replied in a steady, low tone. "Well how _thoughtful_ of you to take it upon yourself to inquire about my wellbeing," she began."As it's never been of any concern to you before, you can understand my reluctance to confide in you," she paused before adding as an afterthought, "if there were anything to confide, that is." Rachel held her head high. "Excuse me, but I have things to do." She turned to her left and began to make her way over to her desk to open up her laptop all the while ignoring Quinn's intrusive presence.

Quinn watched Rachel change right in front of her eyes. _Yep! Definitely a bad idea._ She took a deep breath and stared at Rachel's back for a few seconds gathering her thoughts. She had two options, leave without accomplishing anything, or changing tactics once again and hoping to say something that would make the girl open her eyes to the truth that was so obvious to Quinn. She lowered her voice and softened her tone and decided to be honest instead of accusatory. "You know... our parents aren't that different," she said.

Rachel scoffed softly. She kept her back facing Quinn as she watched the screen of her laptop, waiting for the login page to appear. "_My_ parents don't kick me out if I make a mistake." Rachel replied bitingly.

Quinn just raised an eyebrow not at all deterred by Rachel's words. "What _do_ they do when you make a mistake?"

"They encourage me to try again," she answered instantly, her head bent down as she typed her password into the login screen. She couldn't understand why she suddenly felt like she was lying. Her fingers began to fidget and she refused to turn around and meet Quinn's gaze. It wasn't like she had lied anyway. Her parents _did_ encourage her to try again in anything she didn't succeed at the first time.

Quinn took a step forward watching as Rachel waited for Windows to load on her laptop. She thought back to when she'd been everything her parents wanted her to be. She'd come home after Cheerios practice one afternoon to find print outs from emails between her, Santana and Brittany spread out across her bed. They'd even highlighted passages they didn't approve of."I bet they know all your passwords, but they let you log in and out just to give you a sense of privacy," she said taking a second step closer.

Rachel still refused to look at Quinn. "I don't keep any secrets from my parents," she answered, her back straight, shoulders back, proud of herself.

"As if they would even _let_ you have any secrets," Quinn commented with a slight shake of her head.

A few seconds passed before Rachel finally turned around and met Quinn's stare head on. "I don't give my parents reason to believe I'm hiding anything from them," she waited a beat before continuing. "I'm not the one who got pregnant by my boyfriend's best friend."

A silence filled with tension permeated the room. Quinn stared at Rachel for a long, drawn out moment. Slowly Quinn began to nod her head slightly. This wasn't the first time someone had thrown her unplanned pregnancy in her face, and it was certainly not going to be the last either. She crossed her arms and rocked back and forth, her eyes trained on her toes. When she managed to push down the anger she felt at Rachel's retort, she replied. "I _did_ get pregnant to Puck. I wore that mistake for nine months and my parents _did_ kick me out, but it was the best thing they could have done for me." Quinn turned and walked back to the bed where she picked up her folder and book. She held them at her side and stared at Rachel who was shifting her feet slightly.

"You may refuse to see it, but our parents _are_ the same. They can tell you they're only trying to help you be the best, to achieve your _goals_, but at the end of the day, whose life are you really living? Yours? Or theirs?" And just as quietly as she entered the room, she left.

Rachel stood rooted to her spot, her arms now braced against the back of her desk chair. She stared at the top of her comforter, her heart pounding loudly in her chest. Guilt washed over her, but she didn't dare chase after Quinn and apologize. She was still furious the girl had been implying anything nefarious about her parents and she still had to spend an hour going through MySpace comments with her father before lunch.


	8. Part 7: Tomorrow

**Title:** I'm Still Waiting for the Rain to Fall  
><strong>Author:<strong> anan0maly  
><strong>Summary:<strong> _...pour real life down on me..._  
><strong>Pairing:<strong> Eventual Rachel/Quinn  
><strong>Rating:<strong> PG to NC-17  
><strong>Word Count:<strong> 50,000+ (so far)  
><strong>Disclaimer:<strong> I don't own these characters unfortunately. Title belongs to Evanescence's _'Good Enough'_.  
><strong>Betas:<strong> My friends Aimee and Alma. :) Thank you both so so much.

* * *

><p><strong>Part Seven:<strong>

**& ! & ! &**

Günter sighed as he watched Rachel miss a note on a song she had perfected _weeks_ ago. He sighed and rubbed his forehead with the thumb and index finger of his left hand. With his right hand he lightly shoved her shoulder. "You missed it _again_," he admonished as he went to take a seat in the chair to Rachel's left. He watched as her shoulders dropped slightly. "I don't want to know what's going on with you, and I don't really care. You have your exam in six weeks and I won't settle for just a passing grade."

Rachel sat numbly on the piano stool. She straightened her back and planted her feet firmly on the ground. She was acutely aware she wasn't performing at her usual high standard. She _knew_ how to play her chosen compositions. She'd been practicing for months on these. The only one that needed work was the third piece, 'Rumba Toccato' – the one she'd been practicing in the choir room that afternoon. Rachel sighed as she realized what a disappointment this entire day had been. She turned her head slightly in Günter's direction, her eyes lowered. "I apologize. I have no excuse for my poor performance this afternoon."

Günter just sighed and sat back in his chair. They sat in silence for a few seconds as he watched Rachel slowly caress the ivory keys. "Rachel, do you like the piano?" he suddenly asked.

Rachel's head instantly whipped around in his direction. "Of course I do!" She immediately answered. She couldn't believe he would ask her such a question. She'd been playing the piano for _years_. She wouldn't have stuck with it if she didn't have some kind of love for the instrument.

Her piano teacher just sighed at her response. He let his fingers run through his greying hair before leaning forward, his forearms resting on his knees. He bowed his head and looked at his feet briefly before addressing Rachel once again. "Do you, Rachel? I've seen you every week for the past nine years," he paused. "When we first started you were _so_ excited and so full of energy and you couldn't wait to learn how to play 'Tomorrow' from _Annie_."

Rachel bit her bottom lip. She could remember how excited she was when Günter had joyously presented her with the easy sheet music for her to learn. She'd squealed and thrown her arms around his broad shoulders before demanding he play it for her once through so she could sing along.

"You don't have that passion anymore," he said softly, moving to sit next to her on the piano bench. "Have you thought that maybe it's time?" He asked gently as he bowed his head and his left hand began to fiddle with the watch on his right wrist.

Rachel snapped her head up to look at him. "Time... for _what_?" She asked shakily.

Günter turned his head slightly toward his young student. "Time to quit."

Rachel's breath hitched and her heart began pounding very loudly in her chest. This couldn't be happening. She was _not_ a quitter. An ache began to form behind her ribcage and she each inhale became fast and uneven. "I can try harder. I can do it. I _promise_. Just – just...listen. I can play them all. Perfectly. I can - "

"Rachel," he interrupted. He grabbed her hands that were reaching for the keys and held them together. He made sure to meet her gaze. "I know you can do it. You're a great pianist, Rachel, but playing the piano isn't just about knowing how to read the right notes and play the right keys."

Rachel's eyes flickered back and forth as she stared at Günter. Her chest felt tight and she couldn't seem to get enough air into her lungs. "I can – I have – I _have_ passion. I do. I'm sorry," she began pleading, her nails beginning to dig into his palms. "I can do better. I can – I can show you passion. I – I can do it."

"Rachel... Rachel! You need to calm down," he said as his hold tightened around her hands slightly and he tried to get her attention. "Take a deep breath. It's going to be ok."

Rachel could hear her piano teacher calling out to her. She vaguely registered his attempts at coaching her through a few breathing techniques.

"In... Out..." Günter encouraged as he began breathing along with Rachel. "That's it. Good," he said after a few seconds.

Rachel was finally calming down, but her hands shook as she pulled them away from Günter and buried them in her lap. She had no idea what was happening. She squeezed her eyes closed and took a deep, shuddering breath. "I can't quit," she whispered to her teacher.

She heard her teacher sigh next to her before she felt his hand on her shoulder. "It's ok," he said softly.

Rachel suddenly sat up straight and met his gaze head on. She shrugged his hand off her shoulder and faced the keys. "Today is just a bad day. I can do this."

Günter opened his mouth to argue with her, but took one look at her posture and the determined look on her face and decided that arguing wouldn't get them anywhere. "Let's finish early, then. It looks like it's been a long day for you," he offered as a compromise. He took a good look at Rachel and noticed how tired she seemed to be. "I'm sure you have other things you want to be doing on your Saturday afternoon."

Rachel flashed back to that Saturday morning she'd been at her hip hop class and had seen some of her glee teammates walking down the street. She had nothing to do on her Saturdays because her invite seemed to always be lost in the mail. "No, I want to be here. Let's just do another run through of the last song."

Günter stood up and moved away from the piano. He nodded his head and watched as Rachel closed her eyes and took a deep breath, her fingers poised above the keys. "Don't think about it. Just _feel_ it," he quickly said before she could begin.

Rachel gave a slight nod as she opened her eyes and began playing. She tried to let her mind wonder but she couldn't help but keep getting drawn back to the song she was playing. She tried to think about the distraction she'd had when she'd been practicing in the music room and all she could think about was Quinn Fabray shushing Santana. Rachel's eyes drifted closed as she thought back to the way Quinn had reacted to her playing _Ave Maria_.

Rachel supposed her reaction had been due to the religious nature of the song. That seemed to be the only explanation Rachel could come up with. She instantly felt guilty as she recalled Quinn's visit earlier that morning. She knew she shouldn't have brought up Quinn's pregnancy like that. She was just so _furious_. All the things Quinn was accusing her parents of, it just seemed unfathomable to Rachel.

Maybe it was true that her parents knew her passwords, but she honestly didn't keep any secrets from them. She didn't really see the harm in them knowing. It wasn't like she had people who regularly emailed her. Well, apart from Google Alerts, that is.

Rachel's fingers continued to dance over the keys, her mind completely unaware that she'd moved into playing her second examination piece that she'd been having problems with earlier. Günter watched with fascination as Rachel forgot all about where she was and what she was doing. She played each piece perfectly and as she began to play the difficult 'Rumba Toccato' she opened her eyes, but Günter could tell that she was still lost in thought.

Rachel couldn't help but think about the last thing Quinn had asked her. About whose life she was living. Quinn made it sound like Broadway wasn't her dream. But Broadway had always been her dream. Ever since she could remember she'd been singing and dancing to classic show tunes. It's all she's ever known and it's all she's ever _wanted_ to know.

As she played the final notes, a look of confusion graced her features while Günter laughed. "Spaced out, did we?" He asked with a grin and a friendly pat on her shoulder. "Maybe we just need you distracted _all_ the time," he continued with a wink.

Rachel just offered him a confused smile before staring down at her hands, noticing they'd stopped shaking, her breathing was back to normal and her body felt relaxed. Rachel's brow furrowed as she tried to piece together what had happened.

"Wherever you went just then, go there during your exam," Günter said as he began to pack up his bag. "I'll see you next week," he said as he slung his bag over his shoulder, squeezed her shoulder and let himself out.

Rachel just stared confused at the piano.

**& ! & ! &**

Later that afternoon, Rachel found herself holed up in her bedroom hunched over her Algebra II text book trying to work through the assigned homework. She'd made it through the first two questions before her gaze drifted up to the small window above her desk.

Her day had not been a good one. She'd woken up twenty minutes late which had made her late for her Saturday morning Elliptical workout. Her father had stopped by her room and shook his head in disapproval and Rachel had immediately felt guilty. She cut her workout down to a half hour so she could still fit in her vocal exercises and breakfast.

Her hip hop class had been going alright until she'd stumbled into another dancer during a run through of their spring performance. She was just so tired lately. She hadn't meant to miss the step and then cause the domino effect that resulted in Hannah McCoy's sprained ankle. Rachel made a mental note to bake some apology cookies for Hannah tomorrow. She already felt guilty enough for causing the accident, but when her father found out, he was absolutely beside himself. He spent the entire car ride home berating her. By the time they'd made it to their driveway he'd started in on her commitment to dance and how she just didn't seem to be putting in the effort needed to succeed. Rachel could only take so much before she snapped. When they'd entered the house, she'd headed straight for the stairs and yelled back at him as she escaped.

Even her confrontation with Quinn hadn't been the worst part of her day. No, it certainly hadn't been. Sitting through an hour of MySpace comments with her father was the worst part of her day. She should be grateful that she really only received comments from people _not_ in glee. It would make the entire experience infinitely worse if she had to read comments from the only group of people she felt any kind of connection to.

"_Read it aloud," her father ordered as he crossed his arms over his chest and leaned back in his chair beside Rachel._

_Rachel took a deep breath before she scrolled down to the first comment. "Why do you even bother with these videos? Don't you realise that there are enough people to hate in the world already without your putting in so much effort to give us another?" Rachel swallowed as she tried not to let the comment get to her. If this was only the first comment she dreaded what the rest might say. She couldn't let her father see how difficult this was to sit through, especially after only reading one comment._

"_Next," he ordered, shifting in his chair beside her._

_Rachel held in a sigh and began to read the next comment. "I've come across rotting bodies that are less offensive than your singing." Rachel balled up her left fist and buried it in her lap hoping her father wouldn't notice._

"_We need to work on your image. There's clearly something about you they don't like," Levi commented. He glanced at Rachel out of the corner of his eye before looking back at the computer screen. "Next."_

_Rachel scrolled down a little further. She glanced over the next comment and her eyes widened. "I don't want to read it," she suddenly announced as her finger began to move over the touchpad on her laptop to scroll down. She unexpectedly felt her father's hand grasp onto her own._

"_Read it," he ordered, his voice low and leaving no room for argument._

_Rachel took a deep breath before scrolling back up to the comment. Her eyes flickered over to her father before returning to the screen once again. "__The terrifying power of the human sex drive is horrifically demonstrated by the fact that someone was willing to father you."_

_Rachel leaned back in her seat and lowered her head. She heard her father breathe out through his nose._

"_What have you been saying about us at that school of yours?" Her father asked in a low tone._

_Rachel abruptly sat up straight and turned to her father a look of shock plastered to her face. "Wh-what?" She asked, surprised by his accusation._

_Her father met her gaze head on. His face was blank and Rachel's heart began to pound in her chest. "You heard me," he said slowly._

_Rachel's eyes flittered back and forth. She couldn't believe this. She loved her parents. She always stood up for them. She would __**never**__ say anything bad about them. "I – I would __**never**__!" She exclaimed in near panic._

_Her father just stared at her for a few seconds before turning back to her laptop. "Keep reading."_

Rachel rubbed her eyes as she tried to push that hour spent with her father out of her mind. She eyed her laptop sitting closed on the corner of her desk. Quickly she hurriedly shut her Algebra II books and stacked them to the side. She pulled her laptop close and turned it on. As it quickly came out of sleep mode, Rachel navigated to her MySpace page. She began scrolling through the comments again, but this time searching through usernames instead of actual comments. She just needed to see if any of her fellow glee clubbers had left anything.

One username suddenly caught her eye, **finnster_5**. Rachel grinned as she read his comment. _'This was awesome, Rach! How do you find the time?'_

The smile remained in place as she closed the lid on her laptop and got back to her Algebra homework.


	9. Part 8: One Week

**Author's Note:** Sorry for the lateness again.  
><strong>Betas:<strong> I'm in need of one, please?

* * *

><p><strong>Part Eight:<strong>

**& ! & ! &**

Quinn groaned as _'One Week'_ by Barenaked Ladies began to play through her speakers. She quickly reached for the iPod and hit the forward button on the dial. The song was a little too good a reminder of her argument with Rachel, as it had been almost a week since she'd confronted the brunette in her bedroom. Monday morning had seen Rachel approaching her with a plate of her famous 'I'm Sorry' cookies. They looked and tasted delicious and Quinn had accepted her apology, even offering one of her own.

_Quinn shuffled slightly as she balanced the plate of cookies in her right hand. "I should apologize as well," she began looking down at Rachel._

_Rachel suddenly smiled and straightened her shoulders, anticipating Quinn's regret of their argument._

"_I shouldn't have approached you like that in your room. It was very passive aggressive of me," Quinn said as she looked from the plate of cookies to Rachel's encouraging gaze. "I still think what I said was true, but I shouldn't have said it like that. I'm sorry."_

_Rachel crossed her arms over her chest and narrowed her eyes. "__**That's**__ your apology? It needs work," she said as she grabbed three of the cookies off the plate, turned around and stormed off down the hall._

She understood why Rachel might not have appreciated her attempt at an apology, but she wasn't going to apologize for her first apology just because the brunette hadn't liked what she'd said.

Since their failed attempt at mutually apologizing – Rachel _stole_ some of the cookies, Quinn had made every effort to stay out of Rachel's way. It turned out to be an easier task than she first thought, considering they crossed paths so frequently during each school day. It wasn't that she didn't _care_ about Rachel, because she did. Sort of. Maybe. It was just that she'd tried to reach out to Rachel and the brunette had refused her assistance and honestly, she had her own parental issues to deal with. If Rachel didn't think she needed help, then Quinn sure wasn't going to continue barking up the wrong tree.

Puck strolled into the music room and dropped himself into the seat next to Quinn. The blonde raised an eyebrow at his entrance. "What's wrong?" She asked with mild concern.

Puck crossed his arms and pouted as he sank lower into the chair. "Mrs. Schuester will only give me Wednesday and Thursday off during Spring Break next week," he answered as he turned his scowl toward Mr. Schuester who was shuffling some sheet music and talking to Brad at the piano.

Quinn sat up straight and turned all her attention to Puck. "You're still coming though, right?" She asked seriously.

Puck straightened up. "Of course!" He replied in indignation as he glared at Quinn. "I get off work at five and I'll drive straight down."

Quinn bit her bottom lip as she nodded her head slightly. Next week was Ellie's first birthday and it landed right smack bang in the middle of spring break. Quinn and Puck had been planning to drive down together on the Monday and head back on Thursday afternoon so they could spend some time with Ellie on her birthday, but now Mrs. Schuester had foiled their plans.

Sarah and Alex, Ellie's parents, encouraged Quinn and Puck to visit and always offered up their secondary suite atop their garage as accommodation to the pair. Quinn knew the open adoption they'd entered was not considered 'normal' compared to other open adoptions. The Johnsons had been adamant that Quinn and Puck, if they were to decide, should be a part of Ellie's life. The only stipulation had been that if they decided to be involved in Ellie's life, then they needed to actually be _involved_ in Ellie's life. Sarah and Alex had been quite firm on the fact that they needed to be committed to visits and contribute to the life they were providing for Ellie.

Ellie's birthday would be their sixth visit since her birth. They made an effort to drive down at least once every two months. Their first visit had been awkward and Ellie had almost been two months old at the time. Puck had spent most of the weekend shuffling from foot to foot in the corner as Quinn curled in upon herself as she watched Sarah take care of her little girl.

Just as they had been leaving on the Sunday afternoon, Alex had pulled Puck aside for a 'little chat'. Quinn didn't know what he'd said to him but a week after they returned to Lima, Puck had given up his 'pool-cleaning' business, found himself a job at _Sheets 'n Things_, started attending Math and had _almost_ stopped terrorising students in the hallways. He was still the same Puck who continually tried to bed as many girls as possible and never passed up an opportunity to direct disgusting and crude remarks to the female student body, but Quinn had seen the small, significant, changes. They both still attended the Friday or Saturday night parties, and Puck even threw a few himself, but Quinn had noticed the way Puck limited his alcohol consumption and always seemed to have an eye on her and other girls from glee.

He wasn't perfect, but Quinn didn't need him to be. And neither did Ellie.

"I'm sorry I can't go with you on the Monday," Puck suddenly said as he leaned forward and rested his forearms on his thighs. He lowered his head before running his right hand over his neatly kept mohawk.

Quinn placed a hand on Puck's shoulder and squeezed it gently. "It's ok. The drive's not so bad. I'm sorry you can't get Monday and Tuesday off," she said her hand moving to rub Puck's back slightly. Quinn sighed and looked over Puck hunched shoulders toward the other side of the music room where she spotted Rachel Berry watching them intently. Quinn glared at her causing the brunette to hurriedly look away.

"Alright guys, as it's the last glee rehearsal before spring break, I thought we could have a bit of a jam session instead," Mr. Schuester announced interrupting Puck and Quinn's conversation.

Rachel's hand instantly went up. Before Mr. Schuester could even call on her, she began objecting. "I _vehemently_ protest this decision. We are only weeks away from Regionals. _Now_ isn't the time to begin slacking off. We have a whole week break starting tomorrow afternoon and I already know _some of us_ will be using that week to partake in illegal acts of underage drinking and debauchery," she said as she eyed the left side of the music room where more than half the glee club sat.

Quinn rolled her eyes at Rachel's speech. She opened her mouth to deliver a scathing reply but someone else beat her to it.

"Just because _you_ don't have any friends," Santana replied leaving the sentence hanging.

Rachel just straightened her back and held her head high. "I have friends," Rachel replied adamantly.

Santana snorted before she leaned forward and narrowed her eyes. "Your stuffed animals don't count."

Rachel began to defend herself when Mr. Schuester suddenly stepped forward. "Alright, that's enough! Rachel... I realize how dedicated you are to glee, but you need to take a small break too."

"But Regionals are - "

"Rachel! That's enough," he replied cutting her off in a stern voice.

Quinn watched as Rachel's shoulders slumped. The brunette crossed her arms and turned her head away to stare at the side wall. Quinn saw Rachel's right knee begin bouncing furiously, but the brunette still refused to turn to face the club.

Quinn couldn't believe how insufferable Rachel could be. And suddenly it was almost like a flip had been switched and everything Rachel had implied about Ellie being a mistake came flooding back, followed by an intense need to lash out at the girl. "You could always _leave_. No one is forcing you to stay," she said, her glare piercing Rachel.

Rachel swivelled sharply in her seat. With her arms still firmly crossed she leaned forward and met Quinn's glare with one of her own. "_Someone_ needs to stay here to make sure you don't get off track."

"And you assume _you're_ the person for the job?" Quinn instantly questioned.

Mercedes shot Kurt a sideways glance of confusion while Mike's eyes shifted aimlessly around the choir room trying to mind his own business. Finn's brow furrowed as he watched Quinn and Rachel verbally spar like they hadn't done in years.

"I don't see _you_ jumping in to take responsibility," Rachel retorted as she suddenly stood up.

Quinn saw red. Before anyone could even understand what was happening, Quinn was up and out of her seat climbing over Puck's legs and lunging for Rachel. A squeak was heard from the short brunette as Finn leapt out of his seat and grabbed Rachel around the waist, lifting and turning her away from the furiously approaching Quinn.

"Woah!" Puck exclaimed in surprise as he quickly caught onto the cat fight about to go down right next to him. He tried to grab Quinn's wrist as she fought her way over. Only she was too quick, forcing him to jump out of his seat and wrap one arm around her chest and the other around her waist, effectively pinning her arms to her sides.

"Let me at her!" Quinn growled as she fought against Puck's grip.

"Both of you! Stop it!" Mr. Schuester yelled as he quickly stood between the two girls, his arms outstretched. "I'll ask you _both_ to leave if you can't behave."

Quinn sneered at Rachel before managing to fight her way out of Puck's hold. She furiously picked up her book bag, threw one last look at Rachel over her shoulder, and left.

Santana scowled at Rachel and crossed her arms menacingly as Kurt shook his head in disapproval. Finn gently let go of Rachel and tapped her on the head in a weird sort of comforting way. Puck eyed her suspiciously and Artie and Tina began whispering. Rachel watched as Quinn disappeared through the doorway and knew that a fresh batch of 'I'm Sorry' cookies just weren't going to cut it this time.

**& ! & ! &**

When Quinn made it to her car she threw her book bag onto the passenger seat before sliding in behind the wheel. She buckled herself in and took a deep breath. She couldn't understand why she even let Rachel get to her like this. Quinn shook her head to try and rid her mind of thoughts of the unbearable midget. She started the engine and pulled out of the school parking lot.

She began driving down the relatively busy roads and into town. There was no way she was heading home this early, not when she knew her mother was hosting her bi-weekly _Christian Mothers Group_. Quinn rolled her eyes as she thought about how fake her parents were. Quinn had the slight urge to one day turn up to the 'gathering' with Ellie in tow. But although the humiliation would be all on her mother, Quinn could never put Ellie through that ordeal.

As Quinn began driving slowly down East Market St., she spotted the Police Station coming up ahead and her thoughts went right back to Rachel Berry. Quinn sighed as she drove past the station and continued down to West Market St. She turned onto North West St. and found a parking spot a block down from _Meeting Place on Market._

The weather had been unusually warm for March and it was predicted to reach some record highs in the next week. Quinn slipped a pair of sunglasses on as she exited her car and walked down toward the corner of North West and West Market. _Meeting Place_ was a popular establishment that catered to local musicians and served healthy, but delicious meals and beverages. Quinn stood in line as she read the board above the counter trying to decide on an afternoon snack. She bit her lip and tried to determine how hungry she was. When it gave a slight rumble, Quinn decided to order a Chicken Salad Sandwich in an original wrap and a Berry Blast Fruit Smoothie.

"Can I have a cupcake?" A little boy asked in front of Quinn. He gripped tightly onto his mother's hand as he looked longingly up at the cupcake display. Quinn followed his gaze and saw three cupcake tiers filled with the dessert in varying flavors and frosting. She found herself biting her lip again as she eyed the dessert display. She vaguely wondered if they'd be anywhere near as good as Mr. Berry's.

"Oh my _God_," she muttered as her thumb and index finger moved up to rub at her closed eyelids. Could she catch a break? Or did the whole world feel the need to repeatedly remind her of the vertically challenged brunette?

"Pleeease?" The boy begged, drawing out the word in a whine, his hand gently tugging at his mother's pant leg. Quinn watched as he turned on the puppy-dog look and grinned as his bottom lip began to quiver.

Quinn couldn't help but smirk at the little boy's antics. She wondered if – no, _when_ – Ellie would start doing the same. She knew Ellie already had Puck wrapped around her little finger and she knew he was most likely going to go all out for her first birthday. She fought the urge to stamp her foot in frustration as she realized her thoughts were returning back to Berry and her assumption they would be slacking off during spring break.

The line moved forward and Quinn was only two customers away from ordering. She frustratingly crossed her arms and decided she was going to prove to Berry once and for all that life wasn't always about show choir and competitions. As she hatched a plan to put into action, she began to recognise the perfect opportunity was already approaching to give one Rachel Berry, a swift kick up the ass, and move her into the reality the rest of the world was living in.


	10. Part 9: A Spoonful of Sugar

**Part Nine:**

**& ! & ! & **

Rachel was startled awake from a deep sleep. The first thing she noticed, aside from the heavy hand clamping down over her mouth, and the arm pinning her torso to the bed, was that it was still dark, indicating the _very_ early hour, and that her alarm had yet to go off.

As fear suddenly set in, Rachel began to kick wildly beneath the covers, her body fighting against the restraining arm of the figure hovering above her. She let out a squeak as the face of the intruder moved closer to her own. The heavy shadows obscured any noticeable features that would allow her to determine the intruder's identity.

"Quit moving, Berry!" Quinn whispered harshly, causing Rachel's breath to hitch.

"Mmm?" Rachel asked her eyebrows furrowed as she tried to confirm Quinn's identity through the hand covering her mouth.

"Shush! You'll wake your dads," Quinn ordered as she turned her head slightly to look at Rachel's bedside alarm clock. 5:42 am. "I'm going to let you up, but when I do, you have exactly three minutes to get changed and pack a bag for a two-night stay. Got it?"

Rachel's body tensed as she hesitantly nodded her head in understanding. _What the hell was Quinn Fabray doing in her room in the middle of the night?_ She felt the pressure over her mouth and chest begin to loosen, but it suddenly tightened again and Rachel's eyes widened in fear. Consciously, she tried to calm her beating heart and slow down her breathing, but in the stillness of her bedroom, each inhale and exhale seemed ten times louder.

"Wear jeans. It's cold out," Quinn suddenly whispered, her warm breath brushing over Rachel's ear. She slowly released her grip on the brunette. Rachel watched in slight fear as Quinn checked her watch, glanced at the alarm clock, and then at her doorway. Rachel didn't dare move a muscle.

Quinn turned back to find Rachel hadn't even stirred. She rolled her eyes and sighed in exasperation. "Your time started ten seconds ago. Hurry up!" She whispered, her arms tense by her sides, her tone clearly annoyed.

When the brunette refused to move, Quinn determined Rachel was wasting precious time and groaned in frustration as she reached for the bed covers, throwing them off the reclining brunette. She quickly lunged forward toward Rachel's legs. Her hands wrapped themselves around slim ankles and yanked, causing Rachel to squeal. Quinn 'shushed' her before managing to swivel Rachel's body around so her legs hung off the side of the bed, her toes brushing the carpet beneath them.

Rachel quickly gained her senses. "What are you doing here?" She whispered sitting up on her bed, her arms crossed in defiance. Quinn's grip on her legs had been rough and she really didn't want to be man-handled again by the blonde towering over her. She didn't wait for a response before she quickly pushed herself off the bed and moved across the room to her wardrobe. She wasn't _really_ going to pack an overnight bag, not when it was quite obvious Quinn had gone completely _insane_.

"Two minutes and twenty-seven seconds," Quinn replied as she pointed at her watch. It was still dark but through a small gap between the curtains, a sliver of grey-blue sky filtered in. Quinn's eyes had had plenty of time to adjust to the darkness but Rachel, as talented as she was, had not yet acclimated, causing her to stumble and stub her toe while opening her wardrobe door.

"Sugar, honey, ice, tea. Sugar, honey, ice, _tea_!" Rachel whimpered as she began to hop around on her left foot while her right hand rubbed at her little toe on her right foot.

Quinn's brow furrowed as she tried to hear what Rachel was muttering between clenched teeth. "Sugar, honey, ice – Shit?! SHIT?!" She whispered heatedly with a glare as she realized what Rachel _wouldn't_ say. "Oh, for crying out loud!" She whispered angrily as she moved around Rachel's bed to the girl's side where she forcefully shoved her back onto the mattress. Turning back to Rachel's open wardrobe she quickly located a bag on the floor.

She unzipped it, held one side with her left hand as she began to take down a skirt, a pair of Capri pants and a pair of jeans from the hangers. She stuffed the skirt and Capri pants into the bag before turning slightly to throw the jeans at Rachel's head.

"Hey!" Rachel exclaimed loudly, as a denim pant leg hung off the side of her face. She pulled the jeans off her head and stubbornly folded her arms across her chest again. She pouted for good measure, but the action was lost on Quinn who was already rummaging around for more clothes to throw Rachel's way.

Quinn rolled her eyes and ignored the pouting brunette. She pulled open a drawer and blindly grabbed a handful of cotton underwear and shoved them into the bag. She picked up one more pair from the draw and lobbed it over her head back at Rachel. She didn't look to see where it landed, instead moving to the next draw and grabbing three bras, one of which was also thrown back over her shoulder. She quickly reached for the next drawer and found a collection of knee socks. Quinn groaned at the sight as she stuffed two pairs into the bag and threw a third pair at Rachel.

"I don't wear knee socks with my jeans, thank you very much," Rachel retorted before throwing the balled up pair of socks at Quinn's head. The cotton ball just bounced off Quinn's blonde ponytail and landed on the floor. Quinn froze, turned her head slowly and glared menacingly at Rachel. Rachel's eyes widened and her body shuffled back on the bed on instinct. Quinn quickly turned back to the selection of clothes and pulled a few tops off their hangers, many of which were stuffed unceremoniously into the bag. She turned and took a few steps toward Rachel and held out a t-shirt for her to change into.

"Geez, thank you," Rachel said sarcastically, finally finding her backbone again. Her fingers snatched the top from Quinn's fingertips and held it close to her chest.

Quinn smirked at the brunette. She was really enjoying torturing Rachel. It was quickly becoming her favourite pastime. "One minute and twelve seconds. Better hurry and get changed."

Rachel sat confused for a total of two seconds. "Are you _serious_?" She asked as she stood up and winced as her toe throbbed from the weight. She watched as Quinn dropped the open bag on the end of her bed and began zipping it closed.

Quinn furrowed her brow before looking up at Rachel. "Of course I'm serious," she replied as she suddenly remembered to search for Rachel's cell phone. "Hurry up and get changed we're leaving soon." She left the bag zipped halfway as she headed for Rachel's bedside table. She picked up Rachel's iPhone, charger and without a second thought snatched up the brunette's iPod too.

"I'm going to get my parents," Rachel decided as she began to limp toward her door. "You've finally cracked, Quinn Fabray."

"Get back here!" Quinn whispered sharply, her voice halting Rachel in her intended departure. The blonde suddenly realized she'd have to blackmail the girl in order to get her to do what she wanted. "I'll tell them you spent that afternoon of the Invitational teaching Brittany how to play _Jingle Bells_ instead of practicing for your exam."

Quinn couldn't see it as the sun was still trying to creep over the horizon, but the blood drained from Rachel's face. Suddenly the brunette was scrambling for the clothes Quinn had chosen, even crawling along the floor for the discarded knee socks, before racing into her bathroom to get changed, sore toe quickly forgotten.

Quinn watched as Rachel closed and locked the door behind her. She felt a pang of guilt at blackmailing and essentially threatening the brunette into submission, but it wasn't like she would really follow through with it. From what she had seen so far from the Berrys, she was determined to keep Rachel's secrets. _Aw, crap._ She was getting soft.

**& ! & ! &**

They'd only been on the road for ten achingly long minutes and already Quinn had declared it the Longest Car Ride in the History of the World – capitalization definitely needed. When Rachel had finally changed and Quinn had found her a set of pajamas to take, Rachel had whined about needing to organize and pack all her facial and hair care products. Quinn had shown her an alternative to packing and with a sweeping arm, dragged all the bottles, jars and tubes toward the opening of the bag.

Rachel had looked absolutely horrified at the action and with her mouth agape, Quinn had led her out of the bathroom and to her bed where she thrust a pair of impeccably clean converse into Rachel's lap.

They had finally made it to Quinn's car, with hurried footsteps and a well placed hand over Rachel's mouth. Quinn threw Rachel's bag over the front passenger seat into the back before pushing Rachel into the car. Before closing the door, she bent over and flicked the locking mechanism on the handle of the door, enabling the child lock function. She swiftly closed the door and watched as Rachel immediately tried the handle.

With a smug smile Quinn walked around the car to the driver's side. She slid into her seat, closed the door and clicked the seatbelt in. "Buckle up. We have a long drive."

Rachel grumbled, then crossed her arms and pouted. Quinn just eyed the seatbelt she still hadn't fastened.

When they finally set off, Rachel refused to talk to Quinn, which was just fine as Quinn had no intention of conversing with the brunette unless absolutely necessary. Unfortunately, the silence didn't last for long.

**Less than one minute on the road:**

"Oh my God! I'm being kidnapped!" Rachel suddenly exclaimed, her body turning in her seat to face Quinn. With her arms waving, she couldn't help but express her disbelief. "You're abducting me! Wait until my parents hear about _this_!" She continued, her voice high pitched as she poked Quinn in the arm, the blonde choosing to ignore the theatrics to carefully watch the road.

**Five minutes on the road:**

"I can't believe I've been _abducted_!" She paused to throw her arms up in the air before turning her body to face the front windshield. "By Quinn Fabray of all people!" Rachel exclaimed still in disbelief over the situation. "I mean, we all thought you might have been losing a few marbles, so to speak, but to commit a crime that's punishable by imprisonment in excess of a year is just evidence that we may need to make a quick stop over at St. Rita's Medical Center." Rachel suddenly settled into the passenger seat. "I've heard they have a great mental health clinic," she said earnestly, turning her body toward Quinn who didn't seem to be listening at all to what Rachel was blathering on about.

Rachel prepared to offer a very troubled, and clearly disturbed Quinn, any support she might need. "It would be remiss of me as captain of glee club, if I didn't at least offer to accompany you to the center. I've heard it can be quite daunting to check one's self in, but once they hear you attempted to kidnap me, admission might move a tad faster." As they pulled up at a red light, Rachel reached over and placed a soothing hand on Quinn's forearm. "The first step is admitting you have a problem."

"Christ, Berry! I'm not _kidnapping you_," she replied as she shook Rachel's hand off her arm. It was true. She wasn't _kidnapping_ Rachel Berry. She had permission from Rachel's dad to take her away for two nights. Ok, so maybe telling Rachel about the arrangement might have been a good idea, but Quinn hadn't been sure she was going to go through with her plan until late last night and she didn't want to give the Berrys any excuse to doubt her or her requests in the future.

Rachel's eyes roamed around the car briefly. "Look where we are, Quinn. Was I not just forcibly removed from my home by threat? And am I not _restrained_ in this vehicle belonging to you?" Rachel asked pointedly, her arms crossed in defiance.

"It's a seatbelt. The law requires you to wear one," Quinn retorted as she carefully turned the car onto the 117 heading east.

"And the child lock?" Rachel questioned, an eyebrow raised.

"So you can't escape. Obviously," Quinn replied while rolling her eyes, which only set Rachel off on another tirade.

**Twenty minutes on the road:**

"- probably didn't even _prepare _for a kidnapping. I have _needs_, you know?" Rachel said before she was distracted by the sign on the right hand side of the road. "Wait, _wait_!" She exclaimed loudly scrambling to turn around in her seat to try and look at the sign again as they sped past, but all she could see was the grey metal on the back of it. "Where are you _taking me_?" Rachel suddenly asked with desperation, her sad eyes looking over at Quinn.

Quinn glanced confused at Rachel's reaction. "What?"

Rachel slowly turned back around and settled into her seat. She looked carefully at Quinn, waited a few seconds as her eyes trailed over the blonde curiously. "Why are we going south on 65?" Rachel asked softly. She watched Quinn's eyebrows knit together briefly.

"Because that's one of the roads we have to take to get where we're going?" Quinn answered, her voice lifting at the end, turning her answer into a question.

Rachel eyed her sceptically. The wheels started turning and Rachel was _sure_ she knew exactly why Quinn had taken her prisoner. It took all the willpower she had not to excitedly reveal what she was sure was the truth behind this little road trip. Grinning, she unclenched her fists, uncrossed her arms and sunk into the car seat. She needed to mentally prepare to jump into the role of kidnapped victim at any moment.

**Thirty minutes on the road:**

"I have to say," Rachel began, unable to hold in her excitement any longer. "The preparation and planning that must have gone into this little hostage situation is impressive. I'll be sure to include a chapter about the horrifying experience in my tell-all autobiography. It might even end up in the biopic based on my life: _Rachel Berry: The Untold Story of a Gold Star _– narrated by her two gay dads."

Quinn almost swerved as Rachel's words filtered through. She wanted to laugh so hard at how wrong Rachel was, but she also had this need to see how far Rachel would take this delusion. She sat quietly because Rachel didn't really need a response from her to continue on with her theory.

"EGOT winner Rachel Berry, reveals the _true_ story behind her kidnapping," Rachel suddenly announced, her right hand waving slowly in front of her as if she were reading out the headline.

"EGOT? Really?" Quinn couldn't help but interrupt.

Rachel looked shocked that Quinn would even _doubt_ her talent or future stardom. "I'll have you know, my experience is extensive and growing increasingly every day. Not to mention the amazing talent I already possess. I'm going to, of course, be the youngest recipient. Currently, Barbra holds the elusive title, and she was only 28." There was silence for a few seconds as they both let that sink in. "Oh my God!" She suddenly exclaimed. "I have less than ten years!"

Quinn slapped her forehead as Rachel began fanning herself with both hands and muttering about her five year plan.

**Fifty minutes on the road:**

"Seriously, Quinn. Don't you think you've taken this far enough?" Rachel asked as she turned in her seat again to face the blonde.

Quinn rolled her eyes. "Do you honestly think I've kidnapped you as some plot to further your potential career?"

Rachel's brow furrowed in confusion before the lines on her forehead smoothed out. "Fine..." she whined. "I knew it was too good to be true."

**Fifty-two minutes on the road:**

"Are we there yet?"

"No."

**Fifty-five minutes on the road:**

Rachel shifted in her seat and sighed. She glanced at Quinn out of the corner of her eye before sighing once more. She'd been sighing and shifting for a little while now – three minutes to be exact – and Quinn _still_ hadn't paid her any attention.

"Quinn?" Rachel softly called out, her head lolling to the side to keep her eye on Quinn.

"Mmm?" Quinn answered. She knew Rachel had been annoyingly fidgety in order to gain her attention, but they were approaching their rest stop, and she really didn't want to miss the turn off.

"I'm bored," Rachel announced. "And hungry."

Quinn wanted to bash her head against the steering wheel. _Why did she think this was a good idea, again?_ "There's a rest stop coming up. You can eat something there."

"I _knew_ you hadn't prepared for a proper abduction," Rachel replied with a shake of her head before resting her chin in her right hand against the armrest and staring out the window at the passing scenery.


	11. Part 10: Cabaret

**Part Ten:**

**& ! & ! &**

**One hour and five minutes on the road:**

Quinn turned the car into a parking space close to the door of the small diner. It was a tiny establishment tucked off to the side of the I-75 near Sidney. Quinn shut the engine off and slid her keys out of the ignition. She heard Rachel mutter "finally" as the brunette began to unbuckle her seatbelt. Quinn grabbed her wallet from the center console before exiting the car, slamming the door behind her.

She was almost to the double glass doors of the diner when suddenly her car's horn went off in three successive beeps, causing her to jump. Quinn turned to glare at Rachel, the only person that could possibly be responsible for the noise. Rachel began frantically pointing to her door, in particular, the handle. Quinn pressed her lips together as she tried to hold in a laugh at Rachel's predicament.

Rachel huffed before raising her hand to the horn in a threatening gesture. Quinn quickly darted toward the passenger side and lifted the handle, pulling the door open. Rachel turned her nose up at Quinn as she climbed out. With a huff, she crossed her arms and marched her way toward the diner's doors. Quinn rolled her eyes before flicking the switch to disable the child lock, while Rachel angrily whipped the glass door open and headed inside.

When they were finally seated at a booth, Rachel propped her menu up in front of her face, blocking Quinn out, which didn't bother the blonde one bit. She'd been here a few times and already knew what she'd be ordering so she didn't bother with her own menu.

"Quinn!" A cheerful voice called out in surprise.

Quinn looked startled for a moment before looking up and meeting the excited gaze of a tall blonde donned in a server's uniform. She offered up a small smile and a greeting. "Hi, Anna."

Anna was tall, blonde and blue-eyed. Her hair was pulled back in a ponytail, a few loose strands framing her face. She wore a black headband and clutched her order pad in her left hand, pen in her right. "The usual?" She asked Quinn with a slight bounce and a grin.

Quinn prayed she wasn't blushing. Anna's obvious attentions weren't entirely unwelcome, the girl was kind of cute, but in present company, the girl's flirtations were definitely something to be avoided. "Um... Do you mind giving us a few more minutes?" Quinn asked with a friendly smile.

Anna just continued to grin at Quinn. "Of course!" She eagerly replied before practically bounced away from the booth.

Rachel watched in fascination from behind her menu as the server, Anna, skipped away from the table to lean on the counter between two stools a few feet away. Rachel let her eyes wander to Quinn who was completely engrossed in her menu now, a slight tinge of pink to her cheeks. Her brow furrowed in confusion and she tilted her head in thought as she glanced back at Anna who was leaning her torso over the counter, the short skirt of her uniform riding up the back of her thighs. Anna continued to glance in Quinn's direction and suddenly a light bulb went off in Rachel's head and her eyebrows rose in new-found realisation. _Well, this was certainly new._

Rachel quickly schooled her features and straightened her shoulders as Quinn cleared her throat, meeting her eyes over their menus. "Have you decided on anything?" Quinn asked, her eyes glancing briefly to the side where Anna stood, left knee now resting, slightly suggestively, on the leather cushion of a stool while looking over her shoulder at them.

Rachel followed Quinn's gaze, her eyes roaming over Anna briefly with interest. She quickly averted her gaze back to Quinn when she realized Anna was also eyeing her as what looked to be potential competition. "I'm just evaluating my options."

Quinn raised an eyebrow at Rachel's choice of words. "You are so weird," she said before sitting up and leaning back into the booth. The appearance of Anna had definitely thrown her off her game. She couldn't let Rachel get the upper hand, _she_ was the kidnapper. "I'm going to order, and you better have decided by the time I finish or you don't get to eat."

Rachel glared at Quinn. She had previously decided to just observe the interaction between both blondes, but now she was intent on making Quinn squirm. She watched as Quinn began to raise her head to try and catch Anna's eye, but Anna was already making her way toward their table, grin in place, and top button of her uniform conveniently open.

"Are you both ready to order?" Anna asked her eyes glued to Quinn, grin wider than before.

Quinn tried not to blush and ducked her head, pretending to read her menu. "I'll just have a giant waffle with strawberries and coffee."

Anna giggled as she wrote the order down. "So... the usual, then?"

Rachel watched as Quinn turned bright red.

"Um, yeah. Thanks," Quinn replied as she distracted herself by moving the menu toward the window, stacking it with the other menus.

Anna turned toward Rachel with a small smile, her ponytail swishing over her shoulder. "And what can I get you?"

Rachel beamed up at Anna, set her elbow on the table to rest her chin in her hand. "I usually have a protein shake with banana and flaxseed oil for breakfast, but I've recently realized that I am limiting myself to all the available options life can provide me with." Rachel could tell that although Anna was smiling, she looked slightly confused about where this conversation was going. "I was thinking of branching out, exploring my horizons. I bet you like to eat Cheerios."

Quinn suddenly choked on her own saliva. She tried to catch her breath but her body forced her into a violent coughing fit trying to rid her oesophagus of the tickle that now settled there. Rachel bit her bottom lip in laughter as she watched Anna rush to Quinn's side, patting her back.

"Let me get you a glass of water," Anna quickly said, voice full of concern, as she rushed off behind the counter for a glass.

Rachel leant forward, her fingers now resting on the edge of the table. "Are you ok?" She asked only slightly concerned. Mostly, she was just amused at Quinn's reaction to her question.

Quinn glared at her as a new wave of coughs overtook her.

Before Rachel knew it, Anna was back at the table by Quinn's side helping to get the glass of water into Quinn's hand. Rachel sat and watched the two interact. She knew Quinn probably hadn't intended for _this_ secret to reveal itself, especially to her, but Rachel just couldn't overlook such an opportunity to put Quinn in her place. Sure, she was a firm believer in tolerance and abhorred the ignorance of many of her peers, but this opportunity that had presented itself, this opportunity to bring Quinn down a peg or two, just could not be passed up.

When Quinn had finally gotten her coughing fit under control and her glass of water was half empty, Anna brushed her hair back, took a deep breath and turned toward Rachel. "I'm sorry," she started with a shake of her head, "where were we?"

Rachel smirked, "Eating Cheerios."

Anna just grinned while Rachel felt Quinn's glare. "That's right. Sorry. So, you'd like Cheerios for breakfast?" The tall blonde asked her pen poised to write down Rachel's order.

Rachel looked thoughtful for a moment. "What do you recommend I top it with? Something sweet?"

Anna looked deep in thought for a moment as she contemplated Rachel's question. "Well, Quinn here seems quite partial to our strawberries. Actually, to all our berries. Maybe a berry mixture?" She suggested with raised eyebrows and a hopeful smile.

Rachel held back a giggle and grinned wildly. "Oh, well if Quinn is so partial to the berries, I _must _try some."

"Great!" Anna exclaimed as she turned to walk away. "Oh! Anything to drink?" She asked quickly turning on her heel and pointing the end of her pen at Rachel.

"Just a really large glass of water, thank you," Rachel replied with a friendly smile as she folded her arms on the edge of the table. Sighing contently she turned her head to face Quinn. "She's lovely."

There was silence for a few seconds as Quinn continued to glare daggers at Rachel. "I'm going to kill you, Berry. Slowly."

Rachel just grinned.

**& ! & ! &**

Quinn had excused herself to use the restroom a few minutes earlier, leaving Rachel with a stern warning not to take off. Rachel had scoffed and rolled her eyes. She sat alone in the booth, scooped up some of her breakfast and brought it up to her mouth. She had to be honest; the berry mixture was definitely delicious and very healthy. Chewing slowly, she turned her head to look out the window they were sitting next to. The sun was shining and Rachel could tell it was going to be a hot day. Realising she didn't know what time it even was, she turned her head to look around the walls of the diner hoping to find a clock but all she found was Quinn sliding back into the booth.

"What time is it?" Rachel suddenly asked after quickly swallowing.

Quinn pulled her phone out of her pocket and pressed on the menu button to show her the time. "7:29am," Quinn replied tucking her phone back into her pocket.

Rachel's eyes widened as her mind ran through all that she had missed of her schedule and then she remembered her father mentioning something about a change of routine for spring break. _Oh God, her father. _"You... you _did_ get permission from my fathers to kidnap me, right?" She asked seriously, leaning forward.

Quinn stared at Rachel for a few seconds, which caused Rachel to set off on some rant about how her fathers were going to kill both of them and how she was surprised they hadn't been pulled over or tracked down by the state police yet.

Quinn tuned her out as she thought back to last Thursday afternoon when she had perfected the Rachel Berry storm out and left glee early. She had headed for an afternoon snack and it had been while waiting in the line to order that she realized the perfect opportunity to prove Rachel wrong was to take her to meet Ellie. She'd placed her order, and stood aside to allow the next customer to order. She'd pulled out her phone and dialled a familiar number.

_"Hello?" A voice answered on the other end._

_Quinn could hear childish giggling in the background. "Sarah? It's Quinn. I hope I haven't called at a bad time."_

_There was some rustling before Sarah replied. "No, no. We're just finger painting. How are you?"_

_Quinn smiled as she thought of Ellie covered in paint. "I'm good. I'm actually calling to ask a favor. A pretty big one, actually," Quinn said nervously. She looked down at her feet as she shuffled slightly near the doors._

"_Sure! Ask away!" Sarah replied and Quinn could hear how genuine Sarah was. Every day she thanked whatever higher being there was for helping her find Sarah and Alex who were amazing parents to Ellie._

"_It's... it's about a... friend of mine. She's... Well, I don't want to say too much but there are a few issues at home and she needs a little bit of a break. I was wondering, if it's not too much trouble - "_

"_Quinn..."_

" _- if she might be able to drive down with me and stay the Monday and Tuesday? I know it's really a lot to ask - "_

"_Quinn."_

" _- and you can definitely say no, in fact, you should obviously talk to Alex first and - "_

"_Quinn!" Sarah interrupted for the third time, finally gaining Quinn's attention. "It's fine! Bring her along! It'll be nice for us to meet some of the friends Ellie developed around. Is she in glee too?"_

_Quinn felt relief as the conversation continued. When she realized they had been on the phone now for a quarter of an hour and her sandwich had been waiting for her on the counter, Quinn and Sarah quickly said their goodbyes._

_With the first part of her plan approved, Quinn had set off to the Lima Police Department. If she was going to talk either of Rachel's parents into letting her on this road trip, then it was going to have to be James that she approached with her idea._

Quinn was brought out of her thoughts as Rachel slammed her fist down on the table.

"Quinn Fabray! Are you even listening to me?!" She exclaimed rather loudly, Anna looking up with concern from her position filling up napkin holders. The truckie now sitting at the counter glanced over his shoulder at the pair.

Quinn shrugged a shoulder. "I tend to zone out about three seconds into one of your tirades."

Rachel huffed as she began in on how Quinn should be listening to her... or something like that. Quinn had already zoned out and was thinking back to her meeting with James Berry.

_When she'd asked to see Officer Berry at the front desk and the junior officer had mentioned something about the Bike Team getting ready to set out, she had definitely not expected to come face to face with a very tall, buff and spandex-wearing James Berry._

"_Quinn?" He'd greeted with a grin before pulling her into a hug._

_Quinn was startled by the familiarity with which Mr. Berry had greeted her, but due to her reasons for being there, she went with it, even ignoring the fanny pack digging into her ribs._

"_Hi, Mr. Berry," Quinn greeted with as she pulled out of the hug._

"_James, remember?" He replied with a grin._

"_Sorry," Quinn replied with a slight blush._

_James waved off her apology and with a grin asked her how he could help her._

"_I was actually wondering if I might be able to borrow Rachel for a few days next week," she began. Quinn continued to weave a tale of how she and Puck usually drove down to Cincinnati together but that he couldn't make it down till Tuesday night and how she would really appreciate the company._

_James had been reluctant at first, even pulling out a folded up timetable from his fanny pack. When he had opened it up, Quinn could instantly see that it was Rachel's schedule. "Let's me know where they __**both**__ are."_

_It had taken a little convincing and James had seemed reluctant, but Quinn pushed the 'travelling alone' angle and James had given her a tentative confirmation. When a second Bike Team officer had joined them to call Mr. Berry back, James had glanced down at the schedule in his hands, folded it quickly back up, stuffed it into his fanny pack and told Quinn to come by the house very early Monday morning to collect Rachel. His only stipulation was to have her back by Wednesday as she had her Spring Showcase soon and needed to rehearse for her solo routine._

"So?" Rachel asked in frustration.

"They're paying me to take you off their hands," Quinn replied in a flat tone.

Rachel was stunned silent for a few seconds. "What?" She asked in a small voice.

Quinn smirked. "Kidding. I left them a post-it note. It'll be fine." She disregarded the brunette's concern with a wave of her hand.

Rachel continued to sit there stunned. "A post-it note?" She asked.

"If you're finished, we should go. We still have at least another hour on the road," Quinn said looking pointedly at Rachel's almost empty bowl of cereal.

Rachel looked concerned. "Do they _really_ know I'm with you? And wherever we're going? Which you _still_ haven't told me?"

Quinn rolled her eyes. "Yes, of course they know you're with me. I'll go and pay while you take the last few bites." She began to make her way out of the booth.

Rachel watched as Quinn made her way to Anna who was grinning again at the register. Rachel smirked as a terribly horrible idea popped into her head. She quickly spooned the last of her cereal into her mouth. Sliding out of the booth she caught up with the blondes. Quickly swallowing, she tapped Quinn's shoulder interrupting the pair. "I'm just going to the bathroom. Don't drive off without me."

Quinn rolled her eyes before bidding a quick farewell in Anna's direction. Rachel turned and began to walk in the direction of the bathrooms. Out of the corner of her eyes she watched Quinn leave the diner and quickly snapped up a napkin from a nearby table. She hurriedly made her way back to Anna at the counter and offered the girl a smile.

"Can I just borrow a pen quickly?" Rachel asked as she eyed the front doors hoping Quinn wouldn't be heading back inside for any particular reason.

"Sure!" Anna replied with a smile while holding out her pen.

Rachel smirked as she began writing a series of numbers on the napkin. When she finished, she handed the napkin and pen back to Anna. "Quinn's a little shy sometimes. You should give her a call. She likes it when girl's make the first move... if you know what I mean." With a glance up and down Anna's body, she sent a wink and a grin in the blonde's direction before she practically skipped out of the diner.

**& ! & ! &**

**An hour and forty minutes on the road:**

"Chester Cheetah chewed a chunk of Cheap Cheddar Cheese," Rachel began. "Chester Cheetah chewed a chunk of Cheap Cheddar Cheese."

"What are you _doing_?" Quinn asked as she turned her head, her eyes widening in fright at the tongue twister Rachel was _singing_.

Rachel sighed in exasperation. "You made me miss both my elliptical workout _and_ my vocal warm-ups. You'll just have to sit there while I try and warm up in the car."

Before Quinn could even respond to that, Rachel was moving her lips and jaw in all sorts of shapes, and then the singing tongue twister began again. "Chester Cheetah chewed a chunk of Cheap Cheddar Cheese."

This went on for a few seconds, Rachel moving up the scale, half a tone each time. Rachel took a deep breath but Quinn interrupted before she could hit the next note. "I thought you were vegan."

"I thought you were straight," Rachel instantly replied shooting Quinn a pointed look.

There was silence in the car as Rachel waited for Quinn to deny it. "I..."

"Mhm, as I suspected," Rachel said turning back to face the road, her back straight, hands clasped in front, elbows out to the side. "Chester Cheetah chewed a chunk of Cheap Cheddar Cheese."

**An hour and fifty minutes on the road:**

"Are we there yet?"

"No!"

**Two hours on the road:**

Rachel shifted in her seat. She crossed her legs then uncrossed them. She began tapping the arm rest, and then began biting her bottom lip. She repeated this process a few times.

"What is your _problem_?" Quinn asked irritated.

Rachel eyed Quinn before crossing her legs again. "I need to use the bathroom."

"Again?!" Quinn exclaimed.

Rachel nodded her head. "Please."

"You _just_ went twenty minutes ago," Quinn replied glancing at Rachel who began shifting again.

"Well I need to go again," Rachel replied crossing her arms over her chest defiantly. Her right foot began to tap against the floor of the car.

"You need to go that badly?" Quinn questioned hiding her smirk by only using her eyes to glance at the rear view mirror.

"Yes," Rachel simply answered.

"Ok," Quinn replied grinning as she flipped her turn signal on and began to pull off to the side of the road.

"What are you doing?" Rachel asked in alarm as Quinn pulled the car to a stop.

Quinn put the car in park and turned off the engine. She turned and leaned through the gap between the front seats to rummage around on the floor of her backseat. "I think we have some tissues back here."

"What?" Rachel asked beginning to panic slightly.

"Aha!" Quinn exclaimed as she held up a pile of tissues in the air. Pushing herself back into her seat, she held out the tissues to Rachel. "There you go."

Rachel looked out the window. Far in the distance she could see row after row of trees, but where Quinn had pulled up, there was a row of small bushes just past a wire fence. "You want me to... over there?!" Rachel asked in disbelief.

Quinn leant forward slightly and looked past Rachel's head to the scenery. She shrugged her shoulders. "Why not?"

"Why not? _Why not?!_" Rachel replied almost yelling. "Are you looking at the same expanse of land that I'm looking at? How can you expect me to...to... _squat_ over there?" Rachel glanced back out the window again before turning back to Quinn. "Somebody could see me," she whispered.

Quinn leaned in, their noses almost touching. "Squat _very_ low," she whispered back.

Rachel recoiled before glaring at Quinn. She turned to grab the handle of her door when she remembered the child lock. She turned back to Quinn and began climbing over the center console, her left hand gripping painfully to Quinn's shoulder, her hand at the top of the steering wheel. She propelled herself forward, her left foot braced against her seat. She moved her right foot between Quinn's legs, who groaned as Rachel kneed her in the groin. "Serves you right," Rachel muttered as she reached out for the door handle and pushed the door open. She climbed the rest of the way out, straightened her clothes and held her hand out for the pile of tissues.

Quinn, although in pain, smirked as she handed the tissues over. Rachel huffed in annoyance and walked around the car toward the fence. Quinn quickly closed her door, waited for Rachel to walk around the car before leaning over the handbrake and opening the passenger side door from inside the car.

"Oh, Rachel!" Quinn practically sung out to the girl. Rachel was already carefully making her way down the side of the small embankment toward the fence.

Rachel turned to find Quinn leaning over, the passenger door open. Quinn grinned and waved at her. Rachel's face turned to one of shock before she did something she had never done before in her entire life. She raised her hand, her thumb holding down all her fingers but one. Quinn's laughter followed Rachel all the way to the bushes.

**Two hours and ten minutes on the road:**

Rachel had been gone for over five minutes now and Quinn wasn't all that worried. She _had_ exited the car though, to at least close the passenger door. She now leant up against the side of her car watching the scenery, waiting for Rachel to make it back.

A few more minutes passed when finally Rachel emerged from the bushes, her head down, her arms crossed, wad of tissues clutched in her hand. Quinn watched as the small brunette carefully climbed over the fence and quickly made her way up the embankment, arms still crossed, head still bowed.

"What's wrong?" Quinn asked worried that something bad might have actually happened to the girl while she was out there on her own.

Rachel mumbled a reply as she tried to reach for the door handle.

Quinn stepped into her path. "What happened?" She asked seriously, her left hand coming up to rest on Rachel's upper arm. She ducked her head to try and meet Rachel's gaze but the shorter girl just turned her head away.

"I couldn't..." Rachel mumbled, her sentence trailing off.

"What?" Quinn asked, her hand now rubbing Rachel's arm in a comforting gesture.

Rachel huffed in embarrassment as she took a step back, Quinn's hand falling from her arm. She uncrossed her arms and swung them out to the side. As she let them fall, they slapped her thighs. She looked toward the stretch of road they had already travelled. "I couldn't... I have... I have a shy bladder, ok?" She admitted, her cheeks going red as she tried once more to move past Quinn to get to the car door.

Quinn slid along the door until her backside was covering the handle. She bit her bottom lip as she tried not to giggle at Rachel's predicament. "Can you hold on for another five... ten minutes?" She asked finally taking pity on the girl who looked so ashamed that she couldn't pee in the bushes.

Rachel bit her bottom lip as she tentatively met Quinn's gaze. She nodded her head slightly.

Quinn nodded in agreement. "Alright," she took a step back and opened the door for Rachel. "There's a stop coming up. You can use the bathroom there." Rachel's head snapped up to look at Quinn in shock. Quinn quickly pushed the girl into the car and closed the door.

**Two hours and twenty-five minutes on the road:**

"It may have been a McDonald's bathroom, but it was about a thousand times better than the bushes," Rachel commented as she licked at the hot fudge mixed in with her Oreo McFlurry off the spoon. She savoured the taste. _She was such a bad vegan_.

"And look, you even got a free McFlurry!" Quinn tried to add with a smile.

"You have to promise not to tell anyone!" She exclaimed, a pleading expression on her face. Quinn just rolled her eyes and nodded in agreement. _It was the least she could do_.

Rachel was silent for a few seconds. She leaned back into her seat and swirled her spoon through the ice cream. "Even though you _did_ send me out into the bushes on the side of the road, putting me in potential danger of being attacked by insects and possible poisonous snakes... thank you," she said glancing briefly to the side. "For the ice cream, I mean."

Quinn just grinned. "Right."

**Two hours and thirty-five minutes on the road:**

"Are we there yet?"

"For God's sake, no!"

**Two hours and forty minutes on the road:**

"But we've spent this whole car ride in silence," Rachel whined as she leaned through the two front seats to try and grab for the bag Quinn had packed for her.

"Speak for yourself," Quinn muttered.

"All I am saying is that we could have used all that valuable time to practice a few songs, especially the ones for Regionals," Rachel continued on as she pulled her bag closer to her and unzipped it.

Quinn heard a gasp. "What?"

Rachel didn't answer. She pulled the bag as close to her chest as she could and pulled it through the seats and into her lap. She held the bag tight and turned tear-filled eyes toward Quinn.

"What?!" Quinn asked frantically.

"You... you..." and then Rachel's bottom lip began to tremble as she peeled the two sides of her bag open before pulling out an orange t-shirt and a purple plaid skirt. "Nothing... nothing _matches_," she cried out.

Quinn couldn't hold it in even if she had tried. She burst into laughter. She hit the side of the steering wheel with her hand and threw her head back. "Oh God," she said, a tear spilling from the corner of her eye. She wiped it away and turned to find a very angry Rachel.

"For that," Rachel began in a serious tone, "you get show tunes."

**Two hours and forty-three minutes on the road:**

_"It's time now, to sing out, tho' the story never ends..."_

**Two hours and forty-five minutes on the road:**

_"I used to have a girlfriend known as Elsie, with whom I shared four sordid rooms in Chelsea..."_

**Two hours and forty-eight minutes on the road:**

_"Don't it feel like the wind is always howl'n? Don't it seem like there's never any light? Once a day, don't you wanna throw the towel in? It's easier than puttin' up a fight."_

**Two hours and fifty-one minutes on the road:**

_"The hills are alive... with the sound of music...with songs they have su - "_

"Alright, that's enough!" Quinn yelled as she reached out and grabbed Rachel's iPod, the music suddenly cutting off before she slid it underneath her bottom to sit on it.

Rachel pouted and crossed her arms over her chest. "I hope you realize that by taking away the iPod, it only means you'll have to listen to me sing a Capella."

Quinn quickly slid the iPod out and handed it back over. It was the lesser of two evils.

**Three hours and fifteen minutes on the road**

"Oh, thank God," Quinn muttered as she turned the car into a driveway.

Rachel turned her iPod off and looked carefully around the street they had pulled into. Quinn slowly inched the car up the driveway past a bank of trees to reveal a large, two-storey house with a two-car garage to the right, with what looked like a small apartment on top.

"Where are we?" Rachel asked in a small voice as she looked up at the main house.

Quinn didn't answer as she hurriedly put the car in park, turned the ignition off and scrambled out of the car. Rachel began to follow suit but at a much slower pace. Suddenly, a slender woman with long brown hair, dressed in jeans, flip flops and a purple top strolled out from the back of the house with a big smile on her face. Rachel unbuckled her seatbelt slowly as she watched a small figure excitedly waddle behind the woman. Rachel felt like she was moving in slow motion as she climbed out of the car.

"Ellie!" Quinn called out with a large smile as the little girl; her short blonde curls tied in two small pigtails atop her head, began to gain speed, propelling herself toward Quinn. A high-pitched squeal pierced the air, impressing Rachel. She watched as Quinn bent down and scooped the young girl up into her arms. "Huggles!" Quinn exclaimed as the young girl threw her small arms around Quinn's neck.


	12. Part 11: Another Brick In The Wall

**Part Eleven:**

**& ! & ! &**

"Well," Rachel started as she exited the small bathroom and into the kitchen where Quinn was tidying up. "At least you picked out appropriate pajamas."

Quinn rolled her eyes as she dried the last glass and put it back in the cupboard. "I don't think you'd have such an issue with your clothes if you could coordinate them better."

Rachel looked affronted by the implication that her coordination was lacking in the clothing department. "I'll have you know, that argyle and plaid have always been, and always _will_ be fashionable."

"And that," Quinn began, her pointed finger following the direction Rachel took around the counter top, separating the lounge and the kitchen, "is why Kurt will continue to have conniptions over your choice in clothing."

Rachel just rolled her eyes and waved a hand in the air as if waving off Kurt and his unnecessary outbursts.

Quinn grinned with amusement. "Anyway, I'm going to grab a quick shower." She disappeared into the bathroom, but quickly poked her head around the doorframe. "Don't touch the fold out. I'll pull it out when I finish my shower."

Rachel narrowed her eyes at the way Quinn ordered her around. With a small grumble Rachel waited with her hands on her hips until the bathroom door clicked shut before turning to face the couch. She eyed the cushions for a few seconds before beginning to pull them off and piling them to the side. Just as she was reaching for the metal bar of the pull-out, the bathroom door flung open.

"What did I _just_ say?" Quinn asked in a stern voice. She stood just outside the bathroom, left hand holding onto the door frame, right hand on her hip. She'd managed to undress and let her hair down, the ends brushing against the top of the white towel she was wrapped in, before she remembered that leaving Rachel Berry unsupervised was sometimes a bad idea.

Rachel dropped the bar quickly and spun around, hands moving to clasp tightly behind her back, a look of innocence on her face. "I didn't _touch_ the bed. Just the cushions," she said defensively.

Quinn shifted then crossed her arms over chest and raised an eyebrow. Rachel's eyes followed the line of the towel to where it ended just above Quinn's knees. She continued south, trailing down Quinn's right leg to her tapping foot before flicking her eyes back up to Quinn's.

Rachel knew that look. Quinn had used it on her earlier that morning. Rachel quickly jumped into action. She bent down and picked up the seat cushions and threw them into place before hurriedly sitting down on the edge of the sofa, her back straight and hands clasped in her lap.

Quinn stared at Rachel for a few seconds, her eyes narrowing slightly as she debated whether leaving Rachel alone was a wise decision.

Rachel finally got fed up, rolled her eyes and crossed her arms while puffing out a breath of frustration. "Would you _leave_ already? I can smell you from here."

Quinn took a menacing step forward only to see Rachel quickly fix her posture. "You know," she said, her foot continuing to tap against the carpet, "after today, you deserve to sleep on that lumpy fold-out."

Rachel watched with a barely concealed grin as Quinn disappeared back into the bathroom. She waited a few moments until she heard the water turn on before sighing as she looked over to the bag Quinn had hurriedly packed for her that morning. Piled on top of the closed bag were three new tops, two skirts and even a pair of shorts.

She pushed herself off the couch and made her way over to her bag. Kneeling down on the carpet, she began to sort through the new items, removing price tags and folding them neatly. She thought back to that morning when she'd forced Quinn to take her shopping.

_"What now?" Quinn asked as she began to set up her phone charger on the bedside table, ignoring Rachel, who was standing in the doorway, purple skirt in one hand, orange top in the other. _

_They had just begun settling into the apartment after a particularly heated argument over who had rights to the bed. Rachel had claimed that as the kidnap victim, she should be allowed the bed, that it was Quinn's duty as kidnapper to provide for her needs. Quinn had scoffed and argued that she'd done the driving and had to put up with Rachel for longer than was ever necessary and should be allowed the comfort of the bed._

_They finally decided that an important decision such as this was worth a game of "Rock, Paper, Scissors". Quinn won. Seven times. Rachel had a tendency to bite her bottom lip every time she chose rock. It was an easy victory._

"_Look at this!" Rachel exclaimed as she shook the garments in the air. "I refuse to walk around looking like I dressed myself in the dark."_

"_And... that would be a change, how?" Quinn quipped with a smirk as she turned back to wrap her charger cable around the lamp to keep it in place._

_Rachel growled as she gripped tightly to the skirt and top before she dropped her fists to her hips. "Quinn Fabray? You owe me __**two**__ new outfits."_

_And with that, Rachel stormed out, but Quinn knew she would take the brunette shopping. It sounded like a great opportunity to rile Rachel up even more. To Quinn, bantering with Rachel had never seemed more fun._

Rachel smiled as she held up her new pair of jean shorts. They were incredibly short and Rachel had to admit they really did wonders for her legs when she'd tried them on. She carefully folded the shorts and set them aside to wear the next day.

She knew they were only items of clothing, but Rachel wondered what Quinn would think if she ever found out that their shopping expedition that day, had been the first ever time someone had helped her to pick out clothes, other than her parents.

Okay, 'helped' was a little bit of a contradiction.

**& ! & ! &**

Quinn let the warm water run over her head, soaking her blonde hair. The water flowed down in rivulets, through the long strands of her hair, down her back, meeting at the crevice between her thighs before flowing all the way down to her feet.

She sighed as she turned to face the shower head and the warm water followed a path down her front, between her breasts, over her navel to meet between her thighs. She tilted her head back and out of the spray. She opened her eyes as she searched for the bottle of shampoo.

She squeezed a dollop into the palm of her left hand before using both hands to massage the foaming substance into her scalp. The scent of lavender and lilac began to fill the bathroom as Quinn's fingers continued to work the shampoo through her long hair.

Quinn sighed in relaxation. This was exactly what she needed after a long day in Rachel Berry's company. Rachel could be exhausting. No, scratch that. Rachel was _definitely_ exhausting. She still wasn't quite sure whether bringing Rachel along had been a smart decision on her part, but it was too late now and they both had to deal with the situation they were in.

Quinn stepped back under the spray and closed her eyes as the steady stream of water washed the shampoo from her hair, the suds sliding down her body to her toes, before disappearing down the drain.

If Quinn were honest with herself, which she had been trying to do lately, she would admit that spending time with Rachel had been not only eye-opening, but also, dare she say it, a little bit fun. In all the years Quinn had been bullying the girl, trying to live up to the expectations of others, she'd missed out on many opportunities to interact properly with Rachel.

Quinn knew they could never have been friends, not when she had still been under Sue Sylvester's thumb and her parents "guidance". And although they weren't exactly _friends_ now, they were certainly more than the big, bad bully and small, helpless victim.

Well... technically, Quinn still bullied Rachel. But, as Quinn had begun to learn in recent weeks, Rachel could give as good as she got. Quinn grinned as she remembered how she'd managed to take over Rachel's wardrobe choices earlier that day.

_"No. Absolutely not," Rachel instantly protested, her arms crossed and her head shaking from side to side._

_Quinn rolled her eyes and dropped the top into the cart. "That's a definite 'yes'."_

_Rachel huffed and stomped her foot in irritation. "I said no! What's the point in asking me if you're not even going to listen to my __**clearly **__superior opinion?"_

_Quinn made to argue with Rachel just as Pink Floyd's "Another Brick in the Wall" interrupted their conversation. Quinn slid her phone out of the front pocket of her jeans while Rachel raised an eyebrow._

_"How... rebellious of you," she commented in a dry tone._

"_I use it in honor of Coach Sylvester," Quinn remarked as she pointed to Ellie who was strapped into the seat of the cart. "Watch her," was all she said as she answered her phone and took a few steps away from Ellie and Rachel._

"_Hi! Quinn?" The voice on the other end asked with a nervous tone._

_Quinn's brow furrowed in confusion. The voice sounded familiar but she couldn't quite place it. "Yes?"_

"_This is..." the girl said before she cleared her throat to start again. "This is Anna. From the diner. This morning?"_

_Quinn's heart began to race as the caller identified herself. "Er... Hi?" Quinn answered awkwardly. How did she even get her number? Quinn turned to check on Ellie. When she found Rachel trying to entertain the infant, Quinn knew __**exactly**__ how Anna had gotten hold of her phone number._

_Anna giggled. "I'm sorry. You're friend said you were a little shy and liked the other girl to make the first move."_

_Quinn practically growled into the phone as her eyes narrowed on Rachel's figure. "What __**else**__ did my __**friend**__ tell you?"_

_There was a beat of silence before Anna began to answer. "Well... um... she implied that you... uh... liked it when... when the girl talks... dirty, maybe?"_

_Quinn's face turned red in equal parts embarrassment and anger. She was going to __**kill**__ Rachel Berry, but first, she needed to get rid of Anna. "Anna? I have to apologise on behalf of my... friend - "_

"_Wait!" Anna interrupted. "I know what you're going to say," she began. "But I didn't even get to tell you what I'm wearing," she finished in a whisper._

_Quinn picked up the closest object in her vicinity – a pack of hair elastics – and threw it right at Rachel's head. Ellie squealed in delight and clapped her hands together as Rachel quickly turned and looked at Quinn with equal parts surprise and confusion. Quinn saw the confusion fade when she glared at Rachel and pointed to her phone. _

_When Quinn saw a grin begin to form on Rachel's lips, she knew exactly where she was going to bury Rachel Berry's body._

"_Quinn?" Anna asked, checking if she was still on the line._

"_Anna... I'm really sorry. You're really sweet and really pretty but... but I'm just not ready to, to date anyone," Quinn began. She honestly felt terrible for the girl. How was she to know she was going to be the butt of some joke that Rachel Berry had pulled._

"_Oh..." Anna replied in a defeated tone._

"_I'm rea - "_

"_Well, you have my number now, for when you're ready," Anna interrupted, her tone a little perkier than before. "And I'm still wearing my uniform, minus a few... undergarments. In case you were wondering."_

_Before Quinn could even formulate a reply, the call was suddenly dropped. Quinn slid her phone back into her pocket before turning her head to look at Rachel who was trying not to glance in her direction. Oh, revenge was going to be sweet._

Quinn wasn't sure how she was going to get Rachel back, but she was certainly going to try. Quinn giggled slightly as she remembered making Rachel return all the items the brunette had placed in the cart. After that, Quinn would only allow Rachel to purchase clothes that she herself had picked out for the scheming midget.

Once she was sure all the shampoo had been washed out, she stepped aside and out from under the spray, wrung the excess water from her hair and squeezed a large amount of conditioner into her palm. As she massaged the lavender and lilac scented conditioner into her hair, she recalled the way Rachel had looked in the jean shorts Quinn had tossed at her. She had chosen them as a joke, something to add to Rachel's ridiculous collection of short skirts and dresses.

Rachel had protested at first, complaining that shorts did nothing for her figure, but Quinn had shoved the girl into the change room thrusting the pair of shorts in her direction. A few minutes later Rachel tentatively opened the change room door, allowing Quinn to get a good look at the girl.

_"Well?" Rachel asked, her arms crossed over her chest, her shoulders hunched._

_Quinn had never seen her look so self-conscious. She gave Rachel a once over, noting how long Rachel's legs looked in the shorts. "You look good," she remarked with a nod of her head._

_Rachel's hands found her hips. "Good? That's it? Look at me, Quinn! I look, for lack of a better colloquialism, smokin' hot!" Rachel exclaimed as she twisted and turned in front of the three full length mirrors in the change room._

_Quinn watched as Rachel bent forward slightly and stuck her backside out in Quinn's direction. "Look at how great my," she paused as she eyed Ellie who was happily wedged against Quinn's hip, "behind looks!"_

"_Oh, great," Quinn muttered as she grabbed the door and pulled it closed to block out the vision of Rachel pulling various poses in front of the mirror._

Quinn washed her hands under the spray of the water before grabbing her loofah and squeezing some shower gel on it. As she began to gently rub her arms, she had to admit that the image of Rachel in those shorts had definitely been alluring. But... it _was_ Rachel Berry and it just seemed weird to think of her as anything but the short girl who obsessively wore argyle and knee socks.

But _damn_, those _legs_.

Quinn groaned in frustration at the abrupt detour her thoughts had taken.

_Dammit._


	13. Part 12: Wake Up, Jeff!

**Part Twelve:**

**& ! & ! &**

Rachel stood with her hands on her hips looming over Quinn's slumbering body sprawled across the bed. With her face set, she reached forward and grabbed Quinn's shoulder, shaking it violently. Quinn groaned before she buried her head further into her pillow.

"Quinn!" Rachel called sternly, both hands now pushing and pulling at Quinn's shoulder. Quinn rubbed her face into her pillow and heaved a sigh, Rachel's actions having little effect on her.

"Mmm?" Quinn mumbled her eyes still closed as Rachel moved her hands down to pick up Quinn's slack arm. She began swinging it side to side, her heels digging into the carpet as she pulled on it.

"Quinn..." Rachel whined as she continued tugging at Quinn's arm.

"What?!" Quinn yelled as she yanked her arm back causing Rachel to stumble. She pushed herself up off the mattress, turned her head and glared at Rachel.

Rachel narrowed her eyes. "Get dressed. It's time for some yoga."

Quinn's brow furrowed as she watched Rachel cross her arms and walk out. "Wait. What?!" She called out to the open door.

"Two minutes, Quinn!" Rachel yelled back.

Quinn groaned as she dropped back down on the bed face first. "Whatever," she mumbled, already drifting back off to sleep.

"I can't believe you did that," Quinn muttered as she tried to stretch her arm over her head and bend her body to the side. Quinn was, of course, referring to Rachel's idea of a wake-up call – blasting, while _singing _at the top of her lungs, _'Wake Me Up Before You Go Go'_ by WHAM!.

"Served you right. Tuck your buttocks in," Rachel ordered as she expertly executed the pose standing in front of Quinn, mirroring the blonde.

"_Excuse me?_" Quinn replied, her eyes wide and her tone clearly depicting how offended she was. She wasn't quite sure what she was offended by, the 'served you right' comment or the fact that Rachel just told her to 'tuck her buttocks in'.

Rachel rolled her eyes, sighed and then moved into a standing position. "We're working on the Triangle position. Right now, you look like a trapezium with a bulging side," she said as she began to move behind Quinn. Rachel placed her left hand on Quinn's shoulder, her fingers curling around the muscles before sliding her hand slowly down Quinn's arm, straightening it as she went while sliding her right hand gradually down the blonde's extended leg.

"Ow!" Quinn cried out as she began to feel the stretch.

Rachel rolled her eyes again, even though Quinn couldn't see it. "Push your chest out, tuck your butt in, point to the ceiling with your other arm and hold it," she commanded again, stepping forward, her pelvis pushing into Quinn's backside. "That's marginally acceptable," she muttered. "Now, hold it for a few seconds."

Under normal circumstances, Quinn would be questioning the pelvis pressing against her backside, but her muscles were straining and she cursed the day she decided not to go back to the Cheerios. She used to be so damn flexible. Rachel's right hand held gently onto Quinn's right hand, holding it high in the air. "Now, slowly turn your head up to the roof."

Quinn grimaced as she slowly looked up to the side and right up Rachel's shirt. _Huh_. In the position she was in, with Rachel stretching her arm high into the air, it had caused the t-shirt Rachel was wearing to ride up, creating a substantial gap between the material of the brunette's shirt and her very flat, very tanned stomach. _So... the midget __**does**__ have boobs._

And just as Quinn began appreciating the sight above her, Rachel let go and Quinn found herself toppling into a heap on the floor. Rachel giggled while Quinn grumbled.

"A little warning next time," the blonde grumbled, pushing herself up onto her hands and knees.

"I _did_ warn you," Rachel began before moving to stand in front of Quinn and moving into the tree position, her right foot pressed against the side of her left knee, her palms pressing together above her head. "You were just too busy checking out my bra to hear me."

Quinn ducked her head to hide her blush as she moved to stand up. "Not like there's much to look at," she mumbled, brushing off her knees.

Rachel stood perfectly still in her tree position and just raised an eyebrow in Quinn's direction. "Finn never complained about them. Found they fit his hands quite well." Rachel smirked as she saw a scowl form on Quinn's face.

"Please… just don't."

"Eggs, honey?" Sarah asked as she slid a fried egg onto Quinn's plate. Quinn nodded her head slightly from its resting position on her arm, stretched out on the kitchen table.

Alex chuckled from his seat as he placed a small piece of bread in front of Ellie. "What has you sleeping at our kitchen table?"

Quinn just raised her right hand and pointed to her right where a quirky and very alert Rachel Berry sat, making sure not to break her vegan diet two days in a row eating a slice of toast with honey. A bowl of fruit sat to her left, ready to be consumed.

"_Someone_ decided a 6am wake up call to do _Yoga_ was a great idea," Quinn explained glaring at Rachel as she tiredly pushed herself up off the table to sit up straight. In her own home, she wouldn't dare lay her head on the kitchen table, no matter whether they were having a meal or not. It was strictly forbidden. At Sarah and Alex's, they were a lot less strict and weren't at all offended by Quinn's dramatics.

Rachel popped a grape into her mouth and grinned. "You insisted on abducting me from my weekly routine. It was only fair that you join me," she said, picking up her knife and fork. "I _am_ surprised about your lack of flexibility, though. I think we may have to work on that."

Quinn just glared as Alex chuckled. Sarah quickly interrupted with a smile. "Ok girls, once Alex is off to work for the day, it's just us and an empty house to begin preparations for tomorrow afternoon's festivities."

Quinn eyed Sarah for a moment. "_Festivities?_ I knew I shouldn't have unleashed Berry on the public."

Rachel glared at Quinn. "Mocking my extensive and _obviously_ superior vocabulary will not get you out of an afternoon Pilates session," Rachel replied.

"Pilates?" Quinn asked with whine. "Is there nothing you don't do?"

"Very little," Rachel replied. "Now eat up. You'll need your strength."

Alex and Sarah shared a knowing grin before returning back to their own breakfast.

Rachel was tentatively sitting with Ellie on the living room floor. The two girls had not gotten off to a good start the morning before. In fact, it was the first time Sarah and Alex had ever seen Ellie react in such a manner to someone new.

_Quinn held Ellie to her hip as the infant began fiddling with the neckline of her top. Quinn took a few steps in Sarah's direction and greeted the older woman with a side hug and a kiss on the cheek._

"_How was the drive?" Sarah asked, shielding her eyes from the glaring sun._

_Quinn used her free hand to brush some loose strands of hair away from her face. "It was... eventful," she replied as she glanced to the side to see Rachel creeping around the car attempting to make her presence known._

"_I assume this is the friend?" Sarah asked with a raised eyebrow and an amused grin as she watched Rachel._

_Quinn sighed and rolled her eyes before turning to address Rachel. "Berry! Would you hurry up, already?"_

_Rachel grinned as she quickly hurried to Quinn's side. She held her hand out to Sarah in greeting. "I'm Rachel Berry. Quinn kidnapped me early this morning. Unfortunately, she failed to inform me of our destination and so, as would be my usual etiquette, I'd have arrived bearing gifts. I'm sorry to say, I have nothing to offer you, but it's a pleasure to make your acquaintance," Rachel rambled, all the while shaking Sarah's hand._

_Quinn shook her head at Rachel. "__**Anyway**__," she stressed, gaining Sarah's attention, "this would be Rachel. And I apologize in advance."_

_Rachel's brow furrowed as she crossed her arms over her chest. "Well excuse me for displaying a modicum of manners and maturity. You didn't even introduce us properly," Rachel retorted, her nose turned up at Quinn._

_Sarah grinned and pulled Rachel into a short hug. "I'm Sarah and this little munchkin," she said pulling away and motioning to Ellie who was burrowing her face into Quinn's neck, "is Ellie."_

_Rachel knew exactly who the little blonde girl was. Even just looking at her in Quinn's arms it was easy to see the similarities. "Hi Ellie," Rachel greeted with a grin and a small wave. Ellie buried her head further into Quinn's neck. "Aww, she's shy. It's ok," she announced with a nod toward Sarah. "I'm great with children. They love me."_

_Quinn just raised an eyebrow in Rachel's direction. "Then here, hold her," Quinn said, shifting Ellie in her arms and holding her out to Rachel, who clapped her hands in excitement before sliding her hands under Ellie's arms and pulling her close._

"_See?" Rachel said as she situated Ellie on her hip._

_Suddenly a loud, ear splitting scream erupted from the small child. Ellie began to squirm in Rachel's arms, tears formed and began to roll down her chubby cheeks. She lurched forward as she tried to reach for Sarah._

"_Oops," Sarah said with a comforting smile in Rachel's direction as she gingerly plucked Ellie out of Rachel's arms. As soon as Sarah wrapped her arms around her daughter, the crying ceased and Ellie was soon giggling into her mother's ear._

_Rachel pouted and crossed her arms while Quinn grinned and pat Ellie on the head. "That's it. Good girl," she cooed to the infant._

"_She's __**clearly**__ defective," Rachel replied with a decisive nod._

_Quinn punched her in the arm._

"I fear for Ellie's well-being," Quinn commented to Sarah as they began mixing the ingredients for the birthday cake in a large bowl.

"Oh, you," Sarah said with a smile and nudge with her elbow. "Ellie's fine. I'd be worried about your friend."

Quinn raised an eyebrow. "Rachel? She'll be fine. She's got experience in rejection."

Sarah slowed her mixing to give Quinn a pointed look.

The blonde teen had the decency to look ashamed. "She's... just very irritating sometimes," she said glancing over her shoulder to find Ellie beginning to crawl over Rachel's legs. "Ok, _most _of the time."

"I think she's great," Sarah said before wiping her cheek with the back of her hand, a line of flour now resting on her skin.

"She's definitely _something_," Quinn muttered but caught Sarah's look, "Fine. She... she's a pretty good singer. Her fashion sense is _awful_ and she's way too intense for a sixteen year old. She's bossy and a know-it-all, but I guess she can be a little funny sometimes, too. And her dedication has probably been the only thing keeping Glee afloat the past two years."

"Wow, don't hold back on those compliments!" Sarah joked.

Quinn rolled her eyes with a smile. "Ok, ok," she paused, "but seriously, remind me to find the copy of 'Run, Joey, Run' I managed to wrangle off Artie last year. Comedic Genius. But don't tell her I said that. She might think I like her."

"Like who?" Rachel asked as she slowly walked Ellie into the kitchen.

"No one," Quinn quickly answered before turning to help pour some flour into the mix.

Rachel just narrowed her eyes briefly, but thought better of questioning the blonde. "Well, Ellie and I came to announce our truce. She's agreed to stop crying in exchange for Wiggles songs," Rachel announced proudly with a grin. Her gaze sought out Quinn. "See? And you all scoffed when I went to see them live with Jesse."

"Oh, we weren't scoffing," Quinn replied with a smirk.

"Anyway," she continued, ignoring Quinn to talk to Sarah, "'_Wake Up, Jeff!' _seems to be a favorite."

"She does love The Wiggles," Sarah replied with a smile.

"Come on Ellie," Rachel said addressing the young girl at her side. "I saw you had the 'Toot Toot' DVD. Did you know that was released based off their 1998 album of the same name?" Rachel began as she led Ellie back toward the living room. "They're from a country that is a little far away from here, but maybe you'll get to visit there one day. Now, I believe the first track should be _'Toot Toot, Chugga Chugga, Big Red Car'_. It's very exciting."

Quinn watched Rachel lecture Ellie on all things Wiggles as they slowly moved their way back to the living room. When Quinn saw Ellie look up at Rachel with a wide, toothy grin, and the brunette returned it with one of her own, Quinn couldn't help but feel an ache form in her chest. She rubbed her sternum distractedly before turning back to Sarah and the birthday cake.

Rachel stood in the hall leading into the living area of the small flat she and Quinn were sharing. Leaning against the wall she watched as Quinn fluffed a pillow before tossing it onto the mattress. "I'm sorry."

Quinn looked up startled by the voice. She hadn't noticed Rachel standing there. "About what?" Quinn asked confused as she fixed the top sheet and folded down one of the corners.

Rachel nervously picked at her nails, a habit Quinn had never known Rachel to possess. Suddenly the brunette let her hands fall to her sides and straightened her spine. "I am apologizing for my behavior in glee last week. I was out of line and acting irrationally. I hope you can forgive me."

"So... you're _not_ apologising for the phone thing?" Quinn asked standing up straight, her hands on her hips.

"No, _that_, you deserved," Rachel said taking a few steps in Quinn's direction. "I'm apologizing because I'd had a run in with someone the afternoon before and I took my anger and frustration with them, out on you. I should never have implied that your decisions regarding Elizabeth were anything less than difficult, mature and responsible."

Quinn ducked her head and crossed her arms. "I'm not going to tell you that it didn't sting, because it was obvious I was ready to tear your hair out over it, but, I can't say I haven't, maybe, _possibly_, reacted in the same way on other issues."

Rachel smiled and nodded as she accepted Quinn's roundabout way of forgiving her.

**& ! & ! &**

It was late when Quinn felt someone begin trying to shake her awake. "Oh, for fuck's sake, Berry. It's too early for yoga," she grumbled as she buried her head in her pillow, "even if I do get to look up your top again. Go back to sleep."

"You're getting it on with Berry?" Puck asked as he shook Quinn's shoulder.

Suddenly, Quinn was wide awake and rolling over and away from Puck. "God! What time is it? You were supposed to be here hours ago! What took so long?" she whispered loudly while rubbing at her eyes.

Puck sat on the edge of the fold out, bent forward and began unlacing his boots. "Fucking Mrs. Schuester. Not for real," he added quickly. "She made me take inventory. I didn't think I was going to make it."

Quinn sighed before flopping back on the bed. When Puck stood and began undressing, Quinn looked at him confused. "What are you doing?"

Puck threw his t-shirt to the floor. He now stood shirtless, his jeans unbuttoned. "Getting ready for bed. Move over."

Quinn shook her head, her eyes wide in protest. "Nuh-uh, no way. Go sleep with Berry."

Puck lifted an eyebrow before he bent forward, his fingers gripping his jeans and boxers. "Are you kidding? I checked in there when I got in. She's fucking singing '_Wind Beneath My Wings'_ in her sleep," he replied as his hands pushed at his jeans and boxers.

"My eyes! My eyes! Put it away!" Quinn suddenly called out, her hands covering her eyes as she rolled away.

Puck rolled his eyes as he stepped out of his clothes. "You _know_ I like freedom in the sheets. _You_ go sleep with Berry."

"Ew," Quinn muttered as she grabbed her pillow and forced herself out of bed.

Listening to Berry sing all night was better than being groped by a naked, horny teenager in her sleep.


End file.
